Why do some web sites and ads work - and others don't? There are as many theories as there are experts. One key explanation is usually overlooked; it is the energy generated by the copy and the graphics on the website, or in the ad. If energy is present, it encourages people to stay at your site or read your piece; if energy is lacking, they will most likely click somewhere else or throw it away.

I have developed a system to discover whether a website or ad has a positive or negative impact on the energy system of a viewer or reader. This system uses a technology I've studied, researched and applied for 20 years called Behavioral Kinesiology or muscle checking.

Kinesiology is a way of determining how everything around us affects us. I do Professional Speaking for a living and initially when I demonstrate this technique in my keynotes and seminars it looks to the audience as if it's a trick. To overcome this thought I have everyone in the audience choose a partner and then experience the reality of the concept for themselves, thus self-validating what I am sharing.

Two of our clients are the co-authors of the famous Chicken Soup for the Soul book series Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen. Mr. Canfield has stated publicly that he won't release a Chicken Soup book unless it's been muscle checked! In December 1999, seven Chicken Soup books were on the New York Times best seller list!

So for you to understand what I am going to present in the rest of this article, I need to give you the same experience my audience members have. Here are the instructions so you can validate Behavioral Kinesiology for yourself.1. First you will have to do this with a partner. When you both are ready have your partner face you with one arm down at the side of their body and the other arm extended out like a bird extending its wing so that the arm is at a 90-degree angle to the floor. Have the thumb on the extended arm pointing towards the floor. (See figure 1)

2. Place one of your hands just above your partner's wrist on the extended arm. Place your other hand on your partner's opposite shoulder.

3. Instruct your partner to resist by pushing up as you push down on their extended arm. You are not trying to force their arm down; you simply need to feel the normal level of resistance. Push with a firm, steady pressure for several seconds then release.

4. Keeping the same arm in the extended position, your partner should think of something sad or someone they dislike. Allow a few seconds for them to focus on the thought. Then tell them to resist as you push down on their extended arm. Their arm will usually go down easily even though your partner attempts to resist. (See figure 2)

5. Wait a few seconds, and then tell your partner to resume the same arm position while they think of something gratifying or someone they like. Again, allow a few seconds for them to focus on that image then tell them to resist as you push down on their arm. The arm will usually stay level and strong, even if you push harder than before.

What you have just experienced is the concept that we have an energy system and that it's affected all the time by everything we think, everything we look at and everything we do. What I have done is apply this concept to determine the energy level of web site and pr materials. With it I can measure whether a web site or book cover is weakening, neutral or strengthening.

While someone looks at a web site or an ad, you can muscle check that person. If their arm goes down, it means the web site page or the ad is having a negative impact. A negative impact means that when someone looks at the material, they are consciously or subconsciously turned-off by what they are seeing. The result is that they will probably not spend any time reading the ad or surfing the site.

If the person's arm stays up when they look at the web site or read the pr materials it means it's not weakening. I call this second level neutral. While neutral is better than weakening, it's not as good as the third level.

The third level is to determine if the site page or ad is strengthening. That's the level at which we want each Chicken Soup book to be. That's also where you want your sites and pr materials to be. It means when a reader looks at the site or pr, they say consciously or subconsciously that just looking at it makes them feel good. I was waiting in line at a super market checkout counter. The woman behind me was looking at a Chicken Soup book she was holding when she said, "I don't know what it is, but just looking at the book makes me feel good."

Isn't this what you want all your customers to say when they receive your pr materials in the mail or surf your site? You want them to feel good when they look at your materials.

Now, when I'm hired by a client to muscle check their site or pr materials I may discover via the muscle checking that the piece is weakening. What I'll do is give the client input as to what specifically needs re-doing to move the piece to the strengthening level.

One of the first ads to which I applied this technology was an ad Burt Dubin, President of Speaking Success Systems, had run in SHARING IDEAS Newsmagazine. Burt had been running his ad for 18 months and had been getting a very poor response to it. He told me he was simply running the ad for good will. (Good will is what you call an ad when it doesn't work and you don't know how to fix it.) I muscle checked the ad layout and discovered it was weakening and where the weakness was occurring. I made suggestions for changes, and Burt did what I suggested and changed the ad. Here's what he had to say afterwards:

"I waited four full months to get back to you with my report on how well the new display ad in SHARING IDEAS is doing. You'll recall you muscle-tested my previous ad and found it to be a 'downer'. It weakened muscles. You called my attention to specific dissonant areas of the ad. You recommended they be excised. Then, you muscle tested the new ad and found it positive. We ran the new ad. The results: Inquiries more than doubled. Sales fully doubled."

The editor of Reunion Magazine attended my Creating High Energy Web Sites and PR Materials seminar. He went back to his office and discovered the cover logo of his magazine was having a weakening impact. Based on what he had learned in my class, he eliminated one line from the logo. Here what he said: "Using your system, I discovered that the logo was the number one offender. I eliminated one strip and couldn't budge the tester's arm. Since the change our readership and recognition has been tremendous. Both advertisers and readers tell me they can't wait for the publication to arrive."

Once you start applying this technology, you will discover ways to create high-energy web sites and promotional materials to capture the attention of surfers and readers. Anyone interested in selling 50 million books like Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen?

Dr. Jerry V. Teplitz, president of his own speaking and consulting firm, is celebrating his 25th year in the business. He's a licensed attorney with a doctorate in Wholistic Health Sciences. Dr. Teplitz has spoken to over one million people and earned the CSP designation from the U.S. National Speakers Association. Jerry is author of the books Managing Your Stress, Switched-On Living and Brain Gym for Business. He has created a video for purchase on Creating High Energy Web Sites and PR Materials. For consultations on your website and PR projects or to purchase the video call 8OO-77-RELAX.