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(originally published in The
Jerusalem Post, June 2003)
Is it Time to Remodel Your Homepage?
After a Web site is designed, launched, and promoted it's
expected to draw the positive attention of a specific audience.
A commercial site should attract new customers; an organizational
site should attract users or even donors. But what if this
isn't happening? What if people come to your site, but bolt
before the first page has even finished loading?
It may be time to reassess the design of your site. Sometimes
it needs only a few tweaks; in other cases a complete redesign
is warranted. How can you tell the difference? Use the following
quiz as a guide.
[Note: In order to make this quiz even more effective,
don't be the only one who takes it. Show your site to web-savvy
friends -- especially those who favor honesty over flattery
-- and have them take the quiz.
You may be surprised by the discrepancy between your own
responses and theirs. After investing a lot of thought (or
money!) on a Web site design, emotional attachment to it
is understandable -- but don't let sentiment or inertia block
badly-needed renovations.]
Answer "Yes" or "No" to each of the following
questions:
- Is it immediately apparent,
from a 4-second glance at the Home page, what the site
is about, who it's intended for? All visual
elements of the site -- colors, typography, layout,
images -- should be suited to the nature of the company
or organization and to the viewers the site is intended
to attract. The company's name and logo should be prominently
displayed.
- Does the site look professionally
designed? Fair or not, the appearance of the
site will be taken to represent the nature of the company
or organization behind it. If its online representation
is sloppy, amateur, and generally unappealing, visitors
will conclude that a company's products conform to
similar low standards, or an organization's information
is a product of careless research. A professional appearance
need not be overly-slick or prohibitively expensive.
But achieving it does require more than a rudimentary
grasp of a few computer programs. Graphics and photos
must be attractive and of high quality. All visual
elements should enhance, rather than impede, comprehension.
- Is there sufficient high-quality
content? Good old text is your friend. Really.
Even the spiffiest appearance won't compensate for
a dearth of information -- and of course search engine
placement is closely related to the quantity and quality
of text. A Web site offers the ideal venue for presenting
compelling and persuasive information, without constraints
of space or time. On the other hand, content must be
constantly updated. Take the time to weed out dead
links and pages -- or even entire sections – that
are no longer timely or relevant. And naturally all
pages must be edited for correct spelling and grammar.
- Is there a consistent and
dependable navigation scheme? Sometimes links
to pages deep within the site are available – but
once the visitor uses those links, he finds himself
at a dead-end, with no way of returning, other than
repeatedly stabbing the "Back" button. Offer
a "bread-crumb" trail, or a sub-menu with
links to related pages and pages higher up in the navigation
hierarchy.
- If there are numerous pages and topics, is there
a sitewide "search" feature and/or site map? If
not, much of your painstakingly written content may go
unread.
- Do the pages load quickly, even if the user does
not have broadband? And is the site always available? Interminable
waits for pages to load can have several causes. The
most obvious culprit is the coding of the pages, the
way they were built. But sometimes the fault lies with
the server. Be sure to use a reliable host, with excellent
infrastructure, backup systems, and a tech support team
that operates around the clock.
- Does your site clearly establish its credentials
and identity? People should be able to "see" who
stands behind the information it presents. Provide as
many of the following as possible: names and brief biographies
for main figures (photos are a good addition); a mission
statement; testimonials; privacy policy (if you solicit
feedback from your visitors); in addition to an e-mail
address, offer a physical address and phone/fax number.
- Does the site adhere to the KISS (keep it simple,
sweetie) principle? Don't complicate things that
should be easy. Wherever possible, pages should use straightforward
coding developed specifically for the Web. Avoid formats
that require proprietary programs, such as Word documents
or PDF files. In the rare case that it's absolutely necessary
to use PDF (for example, to enable a user to download
a printable document with very precise formatting), try
to provide an HTML version as well.
- Has the site been optimized for search engines? As
long as your site is not dependent on frames or a Flash
interface, optimization can often be achieved without making
radical revisions. Simply increasing the amount of key-word
rich text on the Home page can have a significant impact.
- Can the site be used across a wide variety of browsers
and computers? Not everyone has the most up-to-date
equipment, but you probably don't want to exclude potential
users from your site. Ask friends to review your site
using Macs as well as PCs, old browsers as well as new.
Scoring: Give yourself one point for each "yes" answer.
0-4 points: Redesign from scratch. Choose a designer
who will not only build a site, but also consult with you,
and help plan each element for maximum effectiveness.
5-7 points: Your site needs work. Questions to which
you answered "No" indicate areas that require particular
attention.
8-10 points: Congratulations! Your site may need minor
tweaks, or none at all. If, however, it's not getting the kind
of traffic or results you had expected, instead of redesigning,
consider how you can enhance your overall marketing strategy.
Do you have any questions? Contact
me and I'll try to answer them in upcoming articles. Also,
you may subscribe for
free to the AtarTec newsletter, which consists of new
articles as well as notifications of critical Windows
updates and relevant virus information.
Request a free
estimate for your web site project.
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