Wondering what pages to include on your website and why?  Here 
is a list of important information that should be included on 
your site.

Before you start thinking about what to write, it is important 
that you create a plan, which outlines what each page will 
contain.  That way you won't repeat yourself or forget vital 
information.  The most common pages on successful websites include:


1. Home Page (First Page)

This is your "sales" page and should provide information about 
what you can do for your customers.  It should also give your 
visitors a brief overview of what they can find on your site. 


2. Products / Services

It is useful to have a separate page for each product/service 
and write as much detail about each as possible.  Start each 
page with a brief summary of the product/service, then provide 
whatever information you can.  If the page appears too long, you 
can always break it into more pages.  When people are searching 
for information on the internet, they want to know it NOW.  They 
don't want to wait until tomorrow when they can speak to you on 
the phone.  The more information you can provide about your 
products/services, the better.


3. Contact Us

Place contact details in as many places as possible.  Make 
it easy for your customers to contact you.  Create a special 
"Contact Us" page, include your details in "About Us" page 
and also at the bottom of each page.  Information to include: 
business name, physical address, mailing address, telephone, 
fax, email, emergency number, website address.


4. Pricing

Whenever possible include the price of your products/services.  
Even if you can't be specific.  It is helpful to put at least 
a range of prices, eg. Carpet cleaning ranges between $40 - $60 
per room.  


5. Testimonials / Product Reviews / Before & After

Include testimonials from your current customer to show your 
potential clients that you are trustworthy, reliable and that 
you offer great service and/or products.  Make sure the 
testimonials are real and if possible provide contact details 
of the person who supplied you with the testimonial.  If you 
don't have any right now, get them!  Simply email your 
customers and ask for their feedback on your business and 
service.  Most happy customers will gladly provide this.  

You could also include before and after photos.  Show the 
problem picture and beside it show the picture of resolution, 
with an explanation of your product's benefits.


6.  Frequently Asked Questions

This has proven to be a great time saver for many companies.  
Instead of having to answer the same questions over and over 
again, place them on your website and keep adding to them.  
The more information you have on your website, the less time 
you will need to spend answering questions by email or phone.

Frequently Asked Questions should address your customer's 
concerns that may otherwise be an obstacle to making a sale.


7. Response form such as "Subscribe" or "Enquiry" form

An absolute must if you want to build a mailing list.  Most 
people don't like giving out too much information, so ask only 
the basics, such as Name and Email Address.  Then keep in touch 
with your customers on a regular basis by sending out information
that may be of interest to them.  You may even wish to develop 
your own on-line magazine (ezine).  There are many fantastic 
free or inexpensive programs that can handle this for you.  
We will discuss these in more detail in future articles.


8. On-line Magazine or Newsletter

This is a great marketing tool.  Not only does it help you keep 
in touch with your customers, but provides your website with 
fresh content.  You can set up your Ezine in 2 different ways:

   1. Email subscribers on a regular basis or 
   2. Publish it on your website.  Or both. Include information 
      about your business, industry or anything that may be of 
      interest to your customers.


9. Resources/Articles

Add value to your business.  Provide information that is 
complementary to what you do. For example, if you sell wedding 
dresses include information about reception venues, wedding 
planners, wedding cakes, flowers.  By adding extra information 
you encourage more hits.


10. About Us

This is a very important page as it tells your customer about
who you are and why they should buy your products, services 
and/or trust your organization.  It can also feature your 
business hours (if you have a bricks and mortar store) or when 
they can speak to someone live.  Many companies also include 
their mission or purpose on this page, details of their staff 
(photos, biographies, qualifications), recently completed 
projects. Other information to include: ACN or ABN, logo, 
directions to your store/office.


11. Guarantee

Offer a money back guarantee.  The longer the guarantee, the 
more effective it will be.  It could be 30 days, 60 days, 
1 year or lifetime.


12.  Survey

Find out what customers think about your website, business or 
product.  


13. Events Calendar

This can relate to your business or industry.  If you are an 
artist, you can feature dates where and when your art will be 
displayed or if you are a singer, where you will be performing.  


14.  Search My Website Feature

Some visitors to your side may not know exactly what they want 
but if you include a search function on your site, they can look 
for it very easily.  Like search engines, this feature will 
allow your visitors to type in a word or phrase and then search 
for it on your site.  It's like having your own mini search 
engines, only instead of it searching the world wide web, it 
just searches your website.


15. Return/Refund Policy

To make your customers feel more comfortable when making a 
transaction at your website, you should provide then with your 
return/refund policy.  Ensure it is easy to understand and 
spelt out step by step.  


16. Privacy Policy

Privacy continues to be a major issue for customers shopping 
online.  Concerns about how their information is going to be 
used is a major barrier when making a sale.  Internet shopping 
experience is built on trust and privacy is the number one 
ingredient in trust.


17. Site Map

A site map is similar to a contents.  It shows visitors how 
the site is laid out and which sections are where.


18. Copyright Information

Your website should carry a copyright notice to protect its 
intellectual property.  It is generally in the form of 
"Copyright © 2004, Your Company Name".


19. Links

Here you can place links to the manufacturers of your products, 
trade associations or complementary services.  When you place 
links to other businesses, you can request they do the same for 
you.  This will not only bring you more visitors, but may 
improve your search engine ranking.


20. Media Information

Include any information, articles, photos of your products, 
staff etc that have appeared in the media - print, TV, radio 
or internet.  


21. News

This can include news about your products/services or about 
your industry.


22. On-line store

An on-line store allows you sell products directly on the 
internet 24 hours a day/7 days a week.  When building an online 
store it is important to take in a number of key concepts.


- Make sure that when visitors arrive at your store the 
  navigational mechanisms are simple and effective
- The actual process of placing the order must be simple
- Make sure you accept common and convenient methods of payment
- Continually test your store so you understand your customer's 
  shopping experience