As Internet technology continues to advance at an amazing rate, each wave of change it brings has an impact on how we both live and work in many ways, some are very much welcomed and of course some we rather do without. In most workplaces today the Internet has become somewhat indispensable. It can be considered as a focal point for communication where for example it aids collaboration among employees and also as a productivity booster where it reduces the time we take to perform many tasks. However, on the flip side there is also the growing concern that some employees abuse and misuse this resource.

“Every interaction, every conversation, every exchange of ideas has an effect on others and presents for us an influencing opportunity” (Mackin, 2006). Using persuasive communication theories such as the Cognitive Dissonance theory (Fistinger, 1957) and the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM; Petty & Cacioppo, 1986) I’ll show you how you can make your website a whole lot more influential.

Trust has been identified by many researchers as one of the most important issues for Internet users. According to Whitty and Joinson (2009) this can almost always be attributed to the degree of uncertainty and the element of risk that individuals experience online. As sites provide, request and gather information, and also try to influence behaviour, support and process online purchases, and even strive to form strong relationships that would result in favourable outcomes for the site owner, getting visitors to trust you and your site is of very high importance. Using research in the area I’ll offer some ways that you can ‘build’ trust through your website.

One of the things website owners often neglect in the site development phase is having a clear purpose for their site that gives focus to its functions. From experience I know that many website owners want their websites to do everything, they heard of a company doing such and such with their site and they too want to do the same. However, this rarely results in a productive and an effective website. As I do understand that the possibilities for your website are endless especially considering recent times, I’m going to help you with some of the basics by getting you to think critically about your site’s purpose.

As persons in region are now getting very interested in social media, I talk often about it and share ways in which you can use social media for your particular cause, however I’ve come to realise that fundamental aspects of our online presence are being seriously neglected. In particular, I’m talking about your website. I set the agenda for this 10 part series that will help you make some much needed improvements and also hopefully give you some perspective on the matter.