A Guide to Online Graphics for Your Marketing Needs

Creating your own graphics may seem like a scary process, but it's not as hard as most people think.

Programs like Photoshop can be a bit complex, but you need to realize that you'll never use most of the functions of the software.

In fact, you could probably just ignore 75% of the functions and still make fantastic graphics.

Most designers use Adobe Photoshop for their graphics. Photoshop is the most powerful design program currently available, and it has the most support as far as downloads and graphics tutorials.

Another reason most graphics designers use Photoshop is because of the ability to use actions and styles. Styles are preset states that can be applied to text or other types of layers.

Actions are special scripts that allow you to repeat a series of actions you've previously recorded with a single mouse click.

If you're considering becoming a designer for internet marketers, you'll probably have to use Photoshop, because almost all eCover action scripts are designed for use solely with Photoshop.

If you want to use these scripts, you'll have to use Photoshop.

If you can't afford Photoshop, you can download a trial version that will work for about a month. You can also download a program called GIMP, which is similar to Photoshop, but it's free.

GIMP doesn't support things like Photoshop actions, styles, or shapes, so keep that in mind. Still, GIMP is acceptable if you really can't get Photoshop.

Graphics are important for a lot of reasons. Some people say graphics don't matter, and ugly sites sell just as well as pretty sites.

That could be true for certain products and in certain niches, but that's certainly not true in many cases.

For one thing, customers really do appreciate a clean, professional looking design. When a customer sees a really attractive site, they assume the site was made by a professional company.

They believe the site is owned by a real corporation, not some teenager in a basement or a scammer operating on the run. Some people believe ugly sites are run by unprofessional people or scammers, and they'll avoid purchasing from these sites.

Many years ago, people didn't really feel that way. They didn't understand the difference between good graphics and poor graphics.

Most sites had relatively plain or even ugly graphics, so there weren't that many great looking sites for visitors to compare a site to. But these days, beautiful graphics are everywhere.

If a customer reaches your site and sees poor graphics, they may very well believe the site is being run by someone who is unprofessional.

Even worse, they may believe you're a scammer who doesn't care enough about the product to invest in a quality design. Like it or not, people often DO judge a site by its graphics.

Another major reason to have a good looking design is for the benefit of other webmasters or affiliates. If you want people to promote your site, a good design will help you attract affiliates and JV partners.

Smart marketers know that good looking sites convert, so design is one of the first things they look at. It's actually better to have no graphics at all than to have ugly graphics!

If you want to sell your site later, you need good graphics. Pretty sites sell better than ugly sites, because they have a higher perceived value. It's the same reason a red car will typically sell faster than a neon green car.

The buyer could have the green car painted for around $500, but they don't think about that. They'll pay $3,000 more for the red car rather than buy the cheaper car and paint it, even though they could have saved $2,500!

People will often do the same thing with websites.