Past thoughts

Awhile back I wanted to start a review site for some service I can’t recall at the moment. However, my primary reason for starting one was that I would able to target a niche more so than I do on this site. With a review site specifically, you have the ability to take something like loans, and review any number of sites to create affiliate income.

Now I’m the type who tries to determine the psychological or visual response that my sites will have on the visitor. So when I drafted up a review site, I of course tried to place everything which I wanted to sell in the best possible place. The most important thing I noticed off the bat was that the #1 affiliate should always be the first to see on the site. If somebody visits your site and is just clicking through to find something, they will see #1 and the product right away. It is just like Google search listings- first is supposed to be most important and, “the best.” And seeing as how many internet users and more importantly consumers were trained to search by Google, there is no harm in using this knowledge to your advantage.

A look at an actual review site:

top online sportsbook

Immediately after I pull up the site, I first look at the banner. This is either because of the flag’s red color which stands out quite well amongst the other images or the cutoff on the flag which creates, what I will call, “a point of interest,” on the site.

Enticing Interest

If it where me, I would take out the flag (or at least make it almost entirely transparent) and enlarge the header for the website. By doing this I think that the viewer would first see the title, “Top USA Online Casinos,” and take note that they are in the right place.

Make it Noticeable

Next, I would go ahead and make the Number 1 site more noticeable. This way the visitor sees it either first or right after they see your header. Let’s face it, don’t you want them to see the best affiliate first and follow it? There are numbers next to the sites which are creating this type of effect, but I really didn’t notice size difference until I looked closely. So clearly, the sites need more emphasis on where to click and which is best.

Color

Color could use a little improvement. Color always plays a big role when determining where you want the user to click or be directed. I have noticed that primary colors are most often the best way to grab the attention of a user and make them read or click on something important. For example, placing a yellow star on the first site would significantly improve the user’s ability to determine that it is in fact the best option to go with.

Likes

“FREE guide,” is very noticeable, and it never hurts to say something is free.

I also like the fact that the first site is showing right in the middle of the screen. In order for the visitor to see anything below #4 clearly, the must scroll down. In turn this is increasing the chances of a user clicking on not only the first, but one of the top four sites.

The update information is nice, but I don’t think it is needed. This isn’t a blog and most visitors will assume that the site is up to date based on how the site looks overall. Perhaps replace the space with a horizontal line to divide your top information with the site listing.

Conclusion

There you have it, a review site somewhat dissected. Hopefully, you learned something from all of this. Tell your user where to go and chances are he/she will go there.