If you do business online, you know how important it is to have a website. Your website is your “store front”; it welcomes new customers from around the world. The graphics you choose play a major role in your website’s success or failure.
First and foremost, professional-looking graphics lead to a professional-looking website. If your graphics are blurry, out of focus, or simply look haphazardly put together, the whole look of your website will take a turn for the worse. When a new customer visits your site, they will assume you are an amateur or that you don’t care enough to do a quality job, and they won’t stick around for long.
To be as effective as possible, the graphics you choose should help to create brand recognition and convey the message you are trying to send to the world. Take Nike, for example. Their famous “swoosh symbol” is featured on their website, as well as pictures of shoes, athletes, and other sports-minded images.
When you visit the Nike site, you know you are in the right place, as the images coincide with Nike’s message of “just do it.” On the other hand, if you went to the Nike site and saw photos of ice cream, cakes, and cookies, you would wonder if you were in the right place. You might not even take the time to read the words on the website, as you might just “click away” and try finding the correct website.
The same theory applies to your website; if the graphics do not convey the message you are trying to send, your visitors will end up confused and click away. The quality of your graphics also affects success of your affiliate programs as well as the number of incoming links you may receive.
By offering an affiliate program, you are asking other people to partner with you and sell your products or services. If the looks of the graphics you choose for your affiliate program do not convey an image that people want to endorse, you will have a hard time recruiting affiliates. If they are going to take the time and effort to promote your product, they deserve to have quality tools to do so. One of the tools they need is quality graphics.
Likewise, when you ask someone to partner with you on a link exchange, they are going to expect a quality graphic. They will be displaying this graphic, with a link to your page, on their website. If you send them an unprofessional-looking graphic, it is going to bring the look of their site down. They will more than likely decline your offer.
As you can see, graphics play a big part in your business. If you do not have experience with graphic software or don’t feel that you are the best one suited for creating your graphics, you should hire a graphic designer. It may cost more up front, but think about how much money you would lose by having a poor image as your graphic. It is well worth the investment to hire a professional.