I make my living as a writer for print publication. Though I??ve been writing books of late, my first jobs were with newspapers. Do you know the very best thing that could happen to a freelancer?

Let me tell you.

I used to dance the hula when my article made it ??above the fold??! That meant that my incredibly vibrant words (well, okay?? interesting words, maybe?) were on the front page, and that my article would be one of the first things anyone who picked up that newspaper saw. Readers bring fame. Fame brings more work. Trust me. Above the fold is a very good place to be.

So, why am I telling you this?

Because you should want your best stuff ??above the fold,?? too. It??s a little different with web pages, of course, but you can see what I mean, no doubt. You want your most important information to show up immediately when the page opens. People shouldn??t have to scroll down to find the information, it should be right there, in their faces!

This is especially important in traffic exchanges. Some timers are only 10 seconds long. If someone has to scroll down the page to find what you want them to know, odds are, they never will. Hence, the splash page.

The best splash page is, of course, the squeeze or lead capture page, where you give something away in return for the person??s name and email address. But splash pages don??t have to be squeeze pages. A funny picture or illustration will get someone to click on your link. Or, a shocking statement might do the job.

Whatever you use, be sure that the splash page content is about 650 pixels wide. People seem to read narrower text more easily. And be sure to end your page before you hit the bottom of the screen. That gives you about a 468 X 650 pixel content information block or so. You can optimize the space by using a table, divided into two columns. However, more than that is just asking to be ignored.

Stand out and sell your product or program! Use splash pages that sit ??above the fold,?? and watch your sales stats rise.