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Hypertext Markup Language is
the foundation of World Wide Web. The web is a gigantic storehouse
of information written in billions of interconnected pages.
The pages are written using the language HTML.
HTML documents are ASCII files with embedded codes for logical
markup, format (text styles, document titles, paragraphs,
tables) and hyperlinks. Browsers (Netscape, Internet Explorers
etc.) can read and interpret HTML codes. HTML is not a programming
language but a mark-up language with hyperlinks for easy navigation.
For more information on HTML, please see 'More Information'.
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What is a successful site ? - All
successful sites have one thing in common - they all are useful
! Your site is successful when people perceive it as 'useful'
and visit regularly. Now what would make someone to visit
your site regularly ? Yes, you have guessed it right - the
content. The content of your site should not only be attractive
but regularly updated to make people return again and again.
Apart from content (which we really can not comment) there
are 10 major elements that will contribute significantly towards
the success of your site. |
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10 elements that make your web-site successful
1. Overall Look
Your home page is your billboard or store front-- it creates
an immediate impression on visitors to your site, so it's got
to create the right impression. It should look:
- Clean
- Uncluttered
- Professional
- Attractive
Aim to "underwhelm" rather than overwhelm ! Too many flashing
lights, colours, drop-down boxes, graphics etc. will be
distracting. It's a bit like those stores that play loud,
frenetic music--your heart rate rises, your stress levels
go up and you just want to get out--fast!
2. Message
Whether you have a business site or a personal page, you
have to give people a reason to stay on your site. That
doesn't mean that you have to give away free programs, books,
tickets or holidays--it does mean that you have to offer
something. That "something" could be:
- Information
- Entertainment
- Advice
- Help with a problem
- Opportunities to contact similarly minded people
- Links to useful sites
In addition, you need to give information about your product
or service that is:
- easy to follow
- easy to find
- easy to order
3. Speed
We all know that speed is the key to keeping visitors. Though
it is normal to experience delay at times (making some to
rename WWW as World Wide Wait !) people DO get impatient
if it takes too long to make contact--so you must ensure
that your home page at least, loads as quickly as possible.
That means no big, flash graphics.
Keep reminding yourself that your first page is like a billboard.
When driving your car, you don't have time to read detailed
descriptions, or admire intricate pictures on billboards.
The signs flash past you and have to make an immediate impression.
Your web visitors are 'flashing past' as well, so keep your
front page simple and fast.
There are numerous articles on the net about how to improve
speed--take the time to check them out and then discard
anything that slows down your home page too much.
4. Graphics and Lay-out
The graphics and lay-out of your home page contribute to
that first impression--think about what image your site
is trying to convey and make sure everything on your site
contributes something towards that overall image.
If you have a serious business site, you don't want garish
cartoons on your front page--but if you have a games site,
then cartoons can be an integral part of the image.
Graphics are what eat up the loading time of your site.
A rough rule of thumb to determine good loading time for
a page is to keep the entire page around 30K.
Images should be between 6 and 8K. Each additional 2K adds
approximately one second to loading time. If in doubt, right
click the image and then click on "Properties" to get the
size of the image.
Colour is also an important part of your site; colours have
different effects on our emotions: Red and orange excite
the senses and increase heartbeat, Blues and greens are
more restful, Yellow reminds us of sunshine and is a happy
colour
Consider the effect you want to create and choose a colour
that is appropriate. When reading Western texts, the eye
travels from the top left of the page, across and then down
to the bottom right. Remember this when you're placing graphics
on your page.
Any graphic which has a directional aspect should be placed
to point the eye towards the most important section of the
page. If you have a picture of a bird on the top left corner
of your page, make sure it is facing inward and that its
beak is leading the eye to the centre of the page, not away
from it.
The same applies to all graphics:
Faces should 'look' to the centre of the page
Cars should be 'parked' facing towards the centre of the
page
Roads, neck ties etc should all be placed to lead the eye
across from left to right, or down from top to bottom
This is also why you should place your navigation bars down
the left side of your page - it keeps them constantly in
the visitor's field of vision.
5. Text Readability
This doesn't refer to the words you use (we'll look at them
in detail later) --but to the way the words look on the page.
Going back to the concept of the billboard, your words need
to stand out on your page- you need to surround them with plenty
of white space.
Think over some of the sites you've visited--some make you feel
as if you have to duck your head to read them! Dark backgrounds
make you feel as if you're in a small space and also have a
depressing effect on your mood.
Certain coloured backgrounds make it very difficult to read
the text; purples, orange tonings and reds dazzle the eyes.
The colour of your text is just as important--bear in mind that
different browsers read colours differently--what looks great
on your browser could well be invisible on another !
Take a lesson from the newspapers and divide your text into
columns for easier (and quicker) reading--even two columns are
better than one slab of text that covers the entire width of
the page.
Another element that contributes to text readability is the
font you choose. Plain fonts (Arial, Times New Roman, Garamond
and Courier) are the easiest to read. Fancy fonts are fine for
headings, but not for full pages (imagine trying to read a whole
page in Gothic, Script, Westminster, or Cloister). Your eyes
would soon tire of the effort involved and you'd be reaching
for the back button!
6. Page 'Skimmability'
You have to make your page as easy for your visitors to read
as is humanly possible and this means breaking it up into little
'chunks' for them. We've already looked at the need for columns,
(which divide the page vertically); you also need to divide
your page horizontally, through the use of headings and sub-headings.
When you were at school, your teachers told you to use headings
in your notes--apply the same principles to your web pages.
Look for the key points on each page and write a short statement
that summarises each point--this is your heading.
Read through each section and see if it can be further divided
into smaller points. Write a summary of these sub-sections and
these are your sub-headings.
7. Fonts
Select a font for all your headings and sub-headings (and stick
to it). It's not necessary to have a different font for headings
(just go up one size for headings, and then use bold on all
headings and sub-headings).
This way it's easy to recognise which is a heading (large and
bold) and which is a sub-heading (same size but bold). The point
of this is to make it easy for your visitors to glance at your
page and to take in all the key points. If what they see interests
them, they'll stay and keep reading--so it goes without saying
that your headings should be written with care !
To draw attention to other important points, you can also highlight
them by putting a whole sentence in bold or a different colour
(or both). However, take care with the colours you select: some
are quite difficult to read--even against a white background.
8. Navigation
Your main navigation bar should run down the left side of your
page, for two reasons:
We're accustomed to reading from left to right and from top
to bottom We're accustomed to finding navigation bars on the
left of web pages-- why buck the system (especially when it
works)?
On a long page it's also a good idea to have a brief nav bar
along the bottom of the page (just home | top of page will suffice).
When you've found a system you're happy with, use it on every
page so that your visitors know where to look for the information.
Make a blank page which has your page layout (columns), any
logos or standardised graphics, alt tags and navigation bars
already built in. Call this 'blank" and then when you make a
new page, you have everything already set up and just have to
enter the content, html tags and then save it as "whatever.htm".
9. Privacy Statement and Testimonials
As your site is a business site, one of the most important things
you have to do is to ensure that your potential customers feel
confident dealing with you. On the web, you do this by telling
people exactly what you're doing to safeguard their interests--in
particular, how you're protecting their privacy. It's worth
having a separate page which sets out, in detail, your policy
towards their email addresses; how you accept orders; how you
gather information; who has access to this information; how
you use information gathered from children and so on.
Visitors also like to know that real people have used your products
or services, so it's worth asking your satisfied customers if
you can quote any positive comments they've made about you.
Don't be afraid to ask for testimonials--we all like to know
that our opinions are valued.
10. Words
Now we come to the most important element. If this part is wrong,
the rest of your efforts are largely wasted. How many times
have you been impressed by a site's initial appearance, only
to be disappointed by poor spelling, careless grammar and punctuation?
It reflects badly on the site owner and indicates that whoever
is responsible for this page is sloppy, careless, lazy, unprofessional
or all of the above ! Would you entrust any of your hard-earned
money to someone who doesn't even care enough to check the expression
of his/her own site?
- You can take steps to improve your own writing skills
- You can employ someone to proofread and edit your work
- You can employ someone to write your pages for you
There are places that will assist you with any or all of
these steps. Don't spoil all your hard work by skipping
this one, vital step! Browse through these other articles
to read how you can improve the writing on your web site.
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