What is courtesy?

Really? Is it THAT important?

We've all been taught to say 'please' and 'thank you'. But even though these words are an important part of the politeness equation, 'courtesy' covers more than just actual words.

The dictionary meaning is this:

"Excellence of manners or social conduct in one's behaviour towards others."

Related words include civility, etiquette, respect, graciousness, refinement, tact, diplomacy - you get the idea. It's way more than just 'please' and 'thank you'. I believe that 'website courtesy' is a three-pronged approach in our conduct and attitude towards our customers.

• It is treating people the way YOU would like to be treated - The Golden Rule!
• It is using diplomacy and tact to 'sell' yourself, your ideas and ultimately, your products.
• It is knowing your audience and understanding the way they think, feel and act!

Get it right and your customers will forgive the odd mistake in your grammar! Get it wrong and you've lost your potential customers before you even start.

So in this Brave New World of 20-second attention spans, what is the 'right' way to treat people?

You have about 20 seconds to attract and keep your customer's interest - don't waste it by 'turning them off' with a lack of courtesy!

What does diplomacy and tact have to do with marketing?

How do you know what your customers want and how they think, feel and act?

And lastly, why bother anyway?

Actually - the last question probably comes first - you bother because you want to be successful. You want to create a website that will attract people and keep them coming back. There's not a lot of point in spending hours creating something that is a total turn-off and a waste of your time. I don't think there's really an argument here, so let's move on...