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Feng Shui for your Website
You've heard about Feng Shui for the home or office, but how about Feng Shui for your website? If you use a website in your business, Feng Shui principles can be applied to your site to help attract customers to your products and services.
The aim of Feng Shui in business is to create balance and positive energy, to enhance your wellbeing and support your business performance. From a Feng Shui perspective the website of a business is just as important as the shop front of a retailer.
Your website delivers a message to your customers which will determine whether they will want to do business with you. Here are my top tips for applying the principles of Feng Shui to your website.
1. Customers must be able to find your website
One of the most important concepts in Feng Shui is known as the "Red Bird". The Red Bird represents your ability to attract Chi (energy) and new opportunities. In your home, this is represented by the front of your property, whether it is attractive and inviting, and the ease with which people can find your home and get to your front door.
For a website, this translates to whether your customers can find your site in whatever way is relevant to your business. Your customers must be able to find your website, whether it be through directory listings, on-line advertising, and other forms of marketing or print media.
The name of your website, business and logo should be prominently featured on your web pages, and should preferably fit within typical page boundaries. Users will quickly lose patience if they have to scroll up, down and sideways to view your business information.
2. Eliminate Cyber-Clutter
Clutter represents stagnant energy, worry and a lack of trust in the future. Think about whether your website can be 'de-cluttered'. Do all of the elements in your site add value, or is there something that creates distraction and annoys your visitors?
- Pop-ups can come across as spam, so carefully consider their use if you want to project a professional image.
- It's not necessary to fill every available space on your web page. Feng Shui is about balance, and having some "white space" is important in providing visual relief.
- If you use music or sound recordings on your site, consider make them optional rather than have them instantly playing. You have no control over the volume of users' computers, so avoid the risk of giving them a fright when they enter your site.
3. Ease of Navigation
In Feng Shui, a well designed home has good energy flow. For a website, ensure that the flow is logical, simple and free of errors. Difficult or confusing navigation is one of the biggest complaints of website users, and turns customers away in droves.
- Use internal links in your website to pro-actively lead your visitors to different pages within your site.
- When posting links to external websites, set the links to open in a new window. This will help prevent users from navigating away from your site.
- Ask someone you trust to check your site, and provide honest, constructive feedback to help improve the customer experience.
4. Image is Everything
The Feng Shui of your surroundings is unique and represents your life at the present moment. Your website is also a representation of you and your business, so make sure that the image you project through your website is consistent with your business goals.
Writing for websites is different to writing for print media, as people tend to scan online content rather than read it thoroughly like a book. Keep the content relevant, concise and engaging, and use short sentences, paragraphs and bullet points.
Ensure that your grammar and spelling are correct. An easy way to check your work is to copy/paste the content into a Word document and use spell-checking tools.
If you run your own business, add an element of your personality to the content. This will make your website unique and help you to build a connection with your customers.
5. Balancing the Elements
Feng Shui is all about harmony and balance. When considering colours, balance light and shade with colours and neutrals. Consider whether the colours you use are appropriate and appeal to your target audience. Your personal taste and style is important, but remember that your website should appeal to your customers.
Contrast is important to ensure that text can be easily read, and try not to let background images detract from the content. Odd looking backgrounds can distract the user from your message.
Overall, focus on the needs of your audience and make your website appealing and engaging. Ensure that your website is rich with valuable information - after all this is what your visitors are looking for. A good customer experience will bring positive energy to your business, and this will support your prosperity and success.
Do you have an opinion to share or comments to add? We'd love to hear it!
Jane Langof is a Feng Shui master based in Sydney, Australia