Article printed from SiteProNews: http://www.sitepronews.com
  HTML version available at: http://www.sitepronews.com/archives.html

Top 10 Ways Websites Make Me Suffer
By Jason OConnor (c) 2004
Oak Web Works (http://www.oakwebworks.com)

I believe some people create and publish websites for the sole 
purpose of tormenting their visitors. Browsing various websites 
and navigating the Web can often be like trying to read on an 
airplane while a kid kicks the back of your seat and the baby 
next to you alternates between screaming, crying and drooling 
on you. There are some excellent websites out there to be sure, 
but there are also a lot of dreadful ones too. The latter are 
the bane of so many people's existence, especially those who 
use the Web regularly.

The Net continues to grow in popularity and importance for 
consumers and businesses alike. Therefore, the quality of sites 
needs to keep pace. Creating and maintaining high-quality 
websites is more important now than ever. Higher quality equals 
more revenue.

The following lists the top ten ways that a website misses the 
boat and contributes to hair loss and nervous breakdowns. Notice 
the common thread that runs throughout each of these. Namely, a 
bad website neglects to consider the site visitor's experience 
in some fundamental ways.


1. Animation

   Seven year-olds like watching animated cartoons on Saturday 
   morning, business people, professionals and most other adults 
   don't. Sites that include showy Flash animations as an 
   'Intro', animated gifs on every page, or flying words are 
   really annoying. They take away from the content and distract 
   the visitor from achieving their goals. Unless your site is 
   an entertainment site, try to avoid maddening motion. However,
   if your product or service can be better demonstrated using 
   Flash, Quick Time, or other multimedia, which is common, 
   offer your visitors the chance to click a link to view it. 
   But don't force them.

2. Too Much Scrolling

   Once I scroll down a full screen's worth, my eyes start to 
   blur, I feel slightly lost, my head spins and my interest 
   wanes. Computer monitors really aren't the best medium for 
   reading. The Net and many sites are so big that it's 
   important to always provide a clear frame of reference for 
   your visitors at all times while they're on your site. If 
   a page requires two full screens of scrolling or more, 
   simply split it up into multiple pages.

3. Long, Text-Heavy and Blocky Paragraphs of Unbroken Text

   I really have to be into a topic or desperately need to glean 
   the information to trudge through big chunks of unbroken text 
   online. If I'm just shopping around for a product or service, 
   you've lost me if I have to endure this kind of torture. 
   Again, it is harder to read text on the Web than in other 
   mediums such as books. Additionally, Web users are notoriously
   impatient, so make your content easy to read and 
   non-intimidating. Use titles, sub-titles, small paragraphs, 
   bullets and numbering.

4. No Obvious Ways to Contact The Company

   If all you supply is an email on your website, your 
   legitimacy may be questioned. Why can't you answer the 
   phone? Why hide behind an anonymous and cold email address? 
   Make it easy for your existing and potential customers to 
   talk with you.

5. Unchanging or Out-Dated Content

   If I start reading content on a site and soon discover that 
   the content was written three years ago, I split. Since 
   there's so much information out there, my reasoning is 
   there's got to be comparable information online that's more 
   current. If you keep your content fresh your site will 
   attract repeat visitors. And repeat visitors are more likely 
   to turn into customers.

6. Long Page Downloads

   It's amazing that this is still a problem. When I click on 
   to a site and have to sit there waiting for it to appear in 
   my browser, I start sweating, picking my teeth, tapping my 
   toes, rolling my eyes and soon want to throw my computer 
   through my office window. I'm obviously a little impatient, 
   but again, I know there are other sites out there with the 
   same information that will download more quickly, so why 
   wait? I'm gone.

7. "Me, me, me!" instead of "You, you, you"

   Generally speaking, no one cares about you, your company or 
   your thoughts. What they do care about is what you can do for 
   them. So sites that show pictures of the company building or 
   tout their deep philosophy on the way business should be 
   conducted really don't bode well for keeping the interest of 
   site visitors. On the other hand, sites that speak directly 
   to potential customers about how they can solve their 
   problems, make their lives easier, safer, richer or more 
   comfortable have a much better chance of keeping the eyeballs 
   glued.

8. Non-Explanatory Buttons or Links

   Here are some examples of buttons that leave me dazed and 
   confused: A wedding site with a button called 'Blanks', a 
   boating site with a button named 'The Lighthouse', a book 
   site with a button called 'The Inside Story', or a Web design 
   site with a button called 'Tea Time'. They sound like Jeopardy
   categories. Imagine trying to find your way on a highway where
   its various signs read 'Over Here', 'Moon Beams', and 
   'Lollypops'. Good luck navigating your way through. It's the 
   same with navigating websites. Button and link names need to 
   tell the visitor where the link leads to. Make it as easy as 
   possible for a visitor to know where they're going before 
   they click. However, there are times when naming a link an 
   ambiguous name may pique the curiosity of a user and get 
   them to click on it. But as a general rule, keep your links 
   and buttons as descriptive as possible.

9. Inconsistent Navigation

   Imagine sitting down at a restaurant and the waiter comes 
   over to you and hands you five different menus, one for the 
   appetizers, one for the soups and salads, one for the entrees,
   one for the desserts, and one for the drinks. Annoying. Now 
   imagine if each menu had a different format, layout and 
   method for listing the items. Brutal. I really don't want 
   to work that hard at picking out my dinner, I'm hungry and 
   I just want a meal. Don't make your visitors work hard either 
   by expecting them to re-learn your navigation system each 
   time they enter another section of your site. They too are 
   hungry; for useful information and they're even more 
   impatient.

10. Inconsistent Look & Feel

   When the look & feel completely changes from one page to 
   another in a website, I think I am visiting another site, 
   another company, a partner or subsidiary. I get very confused. 
   This screams poor planning and often results from tacking on 
   new sections later after the original site was built. This 
   can lead to design-drift. It may be tempting to stray from 
   the original design; you may have a better design now. But 
   wait till you do a complete next-generation re-design of the 
   entire site before introducing a new look & feel. If not, 
   lots of visitors will be scratching their heads with one 
   hand and possibly clicking away with the other.


Finally, any site that employs a number of these notorious 
features is particularly painful to experience. When I click 
to a website that has five different fonts and colors, scrolls 
down to the core of the Earth, incorporates zinging words and 
big fat blocks of text, lists no phone number and has content 
written and dated in 1996, I scream and know deep down inside 
that pulling my fingernails out wouldn't be as torturous as 
having to remain there a minute longer.

================================================================
Jason OConnor is President of Oak Web Works, the synthesis of Web 
marketing, design, and technology. Jason is a Web development 
expert, e-strategist, and e-marketer. http://www.oakwebworks.com
================================================================

Copyright © 2004 Jayde Online, Inc.  All Rights Reserved.

SiteProNews is a registered service mark of Jayde Online, Inc.