Recently I followed my own advice. I allowed
a professional web designer to critique my website. This was
not an easy thing for me to do. I mean, this is my baby! I
did the layout, the design, the writing -- the whole schmear.
And now I was letting some stranger offer his ideas
for improvement. Oh the horror of it!
But you know what? It was a good decision.
Sometimes we are so close to our product
or service that we're unable to see what others see when they
visit our site. By allowing this unbiased outsider to share
his impressions, I received some solid advice on things that
I can do to make my site more enjoyable for visitors.
With the proliferation of WYSIWYG (What-you-see-is-what-you-get)
web building programs today, more and more people are creating
their own web pages. No more does one have to wrestle with
the complexities of HTML. Just insert a few pictures, type
a couple of lines, list your products and prices, and Voila!
You have a website ready to go online.
Or do you ... ?
Recently, in an e-zine that I subscribe to,
Bob McElwain wrote an article entitled, "Make Your Own
Rules." In it, he discussed the importance of designing
your website so it is visitor-friendly. Although there are
innumerable resources that offer advice and suggestions on
how to do this, his premise is that you should develop your own set of rules -- and he explains how you can do this.
What impressed me most about the article
was where he tells readers to visit other sites and try to
answer the following questions:
Why do I like this site?
Why do I feel comfortable here?
Why do I want to stay awhile?
What is it about this site that makes it special to me?
What makes me think these people are successful?
Why do I feel I can trust the business behind this site?
He feels that as you answer these questions,
it will give you the guidelines you need to build or improve
your own site.
I concur. Consider the sales message, the
graphics, the download time, the amount of scrolling that
is necessary, how the information is laid out on the page,
the ease of navigation, etc. Then carry all the "good parts"
over to your own website.
Then -- do what I did. Make yourself vulnerable
and let a professional take a look. That way you'll be assured
that your website is the best it can be.
Nan Yielding has nearly 10 years experience as an online business owner. She is the owner of Writing-Etc.com and offers internet marketing services and assistance to help website owners attract more customers and increase sales.
This article may be copied and distributed so
long as it is not modified in any way and the footer at the end
of the article is included.
