Seven Secrets of
Extremely Successful Websites!
by Rachel Dickson
http://www.rachel-dickson.com

Blunders and lots of them!  I'm guilty and I'll be the first to admit it!  But even the purest gold first had to undergo a purification process.  So mistakes are GOOD!  We can't get any better until we blow it a few times and get smacked in the head with those brilliant fixes our friends, co-workers and our own meticulous analysis reveal.

Below you'll find seven of the things that have smacked me between the eyes over my years of working in the web design business and how you can avoid them to begin with.  (You'll be amazed at how simple they are too!)

 

First Impression a throat-cutter?

Web sites are no different than meeting a stranger for the first time.  Yep, you guessed it...you've got approximately 3-5 seconds for them to love you or jump you.  Folks will jump off your site quicker than you can spit if they're attention isn't held.  (We all do it...we click on a link thinking that we're going to see this great site describing a particular widget and I end up looking at a blank screen for 5 seconds and I grow bored waiting for something (unknown maybe) to download, say "forget it" and go somewhere else.)  Don't cut your own throat!  So let's look at what folks on your site are seeing for the first time.

 

  • (1) What fits in the screen I'm looking at?
    Computer monitors vary from desk to desk as well as personal settings (color settings, screen resolution, etc) residing on those monitors. But generally speaking, folks are probably actually seeing only a portion of your homepage at first glance (i.e., you have to scroll down to see the entire page).  Most readers will be looking at your site on a seventeen to nineteen-inch monitor, and the top four or five vertical inches are all that is sure to be visible on their screens.      So doesn't it make sense to be SURE that the MOST important stuff you want them to see during this 3 second introduction be seen there?
    Remember location, location, location?  Well, this also applies to web site layout!  Yes!  There is PRIME real estate on your website just like there's PRIME real estate in NY city when Donald Trump is choosing one location over another to develop a property.  FIND it through testing...and use it for the greatest good!  (Hint: In the general 30 square inches of your homepage the PRIME real estate is the top four to five vertical inches.)
     
  • (2) Who are you?
    NEVER assume that folks know what you do and who you are simply by seeing a photo, graphic or logo on your site.  How are they supposed to know that your motel/hotel is in Texas if it doesn't say so?  For that matter, how are they to know that you offer a wide-range of services rather than just one if your site doesn't say so?  MAKE IT PLAIN!  TELL me what I need to know!  Be sure that your location, contact (phone #, email) information is VERY obvious on your site.  Place your logo in prominent place(s) on your site and remove any doubt of who you are and what services you're offering in as many ways as you can think of.
     
  • (3) Content...is it what they're looking for?
    Ok.  So I too have deliberated over the question of "what DO my customers want from my site?" Duh...why not ask them?  Start feeling out your customers on a face-to-face basis asking them pointed questions such as..."What have you looked for on my site and haven't found?" or "What would YOU like to see on my site?" or "What do you hate about my site?" etc, etc.  (...if you're not a "face-to-face" business use email to survey your customers).  For that matter ask everyone. Friends. Family.  Co-workers.  Your customer service department.  Everyone.
    Regarding text...think about how YOU read content.  Do you read EVERY WORD of an article you're semi-interested in or do you skim over it hunting for the details you're REALLY looking for? (Hint: edit, proofread, edit, proofread, proofread, edit.  Nothing is worse than displaying your ignorance by hosting mis-spellings.  Grammar is not such a big deal...as folks find "talk-friendly" text more inviting than proper grammar.  Write for online.)

 

Blocks of text!  Aaahhh, who wants to read THAT?

A wall of text is deadly for an interactive experience.  Intimidating.  Boring.  Painful to read. Write for online, not print.  To draw users into the text and support scannability, use well-documented tricks:

    • subheads
    • bulleted lists
    • highlighted keywords
    • short paragraphs
    • the inverted pyramid
    • a simple writing style, and
    • de-fluffed language devoid of marketese

 

  • (4) Provide a compass!
    Folks have been surfing around on the internet for a few years now and expect to find links to click on that will take them to where they're wanting to go.  BE SURE these are not only easy to find, but easy to figure out.  Familiarity is GOOD!  Confusion is BAD!  Don't confuse! (remember the throat-cutting?)  Left side navigation bars, right-side navigation bars, or horizontal lists at the top of each page are the most familiar formats.  (Be cautious about fancy java buttons (however COOL they may be) because again...it may be confusing.)  I have seen sites where I didn't know what I was supposed to do so I just started moving my mouse around hoping I'd find something to click on! BAD!  Users are BEGGING...PLEASE don't waste my time!
     
  • (5) Time Wasters, What Are We Thinking?
    By now you've been in business long enough to know either what you want your customers to know, or better yet, what it is that your customers want to know.  Then TELL THEM!  Sit down, (cup of coffee, soda or whatever calms you best) pad of paper in hand, and jot down anything and everything that you think your customers want/need to find on your site.  Then GET TO WORK!  The more helpful your site is...the more time you'll save yourself, your staff and your customers.

 

Don't include an active link
to the homepage on the homepage.

Active links to current pages cause three problems:

    • If they click it, a link leading to the current page is an utter waster of users time.
    • Worse, such links cause users to doubt whether they're really at the location they think they're at.
    • Worst of all, if users do follow these no-op links they'll be confused as to their new location, particularly if the page is scrolled back to the top

Homepage links on the homepage typically result from using a universal navigation bar that includes "home" as an option.  Fine.  But when users are on a page that's featured in the navbar, you should turn off that option's link and highlight it in such a way that indicates that it's the current location.  (Hint: Be sure to include a link back to the homepage from every other page!)

     

  • (6) No Dumb Questions?  SURE There ARE!
    Those not asked are the dumb questions right?  Well, ask questions for them!  Does your site have a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section?  You know what I'm talking about...those questions that EVERYONE asks!  What is your phone number?  What are your hours of operation?  What are your prices?  How long does it take to get there from Podunk Junction?  What is your cancellation policy?  Again...don't waste my time...provide me with the information I'm looking for.
     
  • (7) Trust or Bust...says Jakob Neilsen
    Ok, so we're all finally beginning to loosen up a bit with our grip on our credit cards when it comes to providing that information in a purchase over the internet.  BUT...the New York Times recently wrote, trusting a website "is like following a helpful stranger in Morocco who offers to take you to the best rug store."  So how can we overcome the THICK "lack of trust" that still exists (and probably will continue to exist forever in some form or another)?
    Jakob Neilsen says "design itself can communicate trustworthiness in four ways:
     
    • Design quality: professional appearance feels solid; clear navigation conveys respect for customers and an implied promise of good service.  Typos or difficult navigation communicate disregard for the users.
    • Up-front disclosure of all aspects of the customer relationships.  For examples, reveal shipping charges immediately rather than waiting until after the user has placed an order.  You may cheat a few people into ordering by hiding the shipping costs, but many more will abandon the site at an early stage of the process.  And those users who do get cheated will only be suckers once.
    • Comprehensive, correct, and current content and product selection feel solid. If a site has product photos, it should have good shots of all products. Haphazard, random content signal a brittle service. Rolf Molich and Christian Gram ran usability tests of a map site that did not show a recently constructed bridge: users instantly lost faith in the site and wondered what else was missing from the maps.
    • Connected to the rest of the Web with links in and out. Not being afraid to link to other sites is a sign of confidence, and third-party sites are much more credible than anything you can say yourself. Isolated sites feel like they have something to hide.  

 *Please feel free to use the content of this article, but I request only that you link back to this site and give credit to the resources quoted within this article.  Rachel Dickson --Be Significant

Be Significant: Affordable, Fast, Effective Web Design
http://www.rachel-dickson.com
rachel@rachel-dickson.com