Hanging A Useful “Shingle”
Recently, I was hired to do some third party consulting for Intuit with regard to how clients are using their Homestead Web site building tool for establishing their web presence, then provide a critique of the overall process of the “home grown web site” process. It was like stepping into a way-back machine.
Hordes of hobbyists and small business owners have really taken to Intuit’s hosting and site building service. I was able to review sites on all sorts of topics, from lawn care to terminal illness awareness. Some of the results were surprising in their innovation, but equally surprising was the sheer number of sites that looked and felt like they were built in 1999 using a a really old version of Front Page. I won’t call anyone out by linking to their sites, but I can describe some of the mistakes I saw repeatedly.
Why Am I Here? What Do I Do?
I guess my favorite has to be “the site without a purpose.” The list of sites I was asked to review were sites where the owners had requested feedback and suggestions for improvement. I assumed I would be looking at sites that were ready to be shown to the world. Alas, such was not the case… one of the sites I reviewed had two different business names on the main page – I didn’t know which business’ site I was on until I went digging around a little bit. If that’s not confusing to a site visitor, I don’t know what is. One of the first immutable rules of web development and design is that every page has to answer some important questions for the user, like: Why am I here? What do you want me to do?
If a person lands on your site and confusion ensues, they’re not going to stick around. Having a clearly labeled site is a no-brainer, or should be. I can honestly say that I am no fan of MLM marketing pages, but those guys never let there be a doubt as to why you’re on their sites – they beat you over the head with the reason you’re there: Buy now! Order soon! Save $800 in the next five minutes! Click here to make easy money! Fill out this form to receive my secret E-book! Play this video to see how my system works! Sign up for free classes!
You know the routine – we don’t necessarily like the incessant nature of these pages, (of which, this image is a sample) but you have to admit, there’s absolutely no doubt as to why we’re on this page or what the site owner wants us to do: click here, fill out a form, buy now, watch my video…
The vast majority of the sites I reviewed all suffered from some form of “identity crisis,” the most prevalent being the site owner’s complete absence of any idea why they were putting the site there. They couldn’t tell the visitor what to do because the site owner themselves had no idea why the site was built.
Before you hang out your shingle, figure out exactly what your web site is supposed to do first. Brochure-ware sites are no longer useful. “Billboards on the Information Highway” are way outdated – don’t fool yourself into thinking your web site can be of any use to you if you’re just using it as an electronic business card. You don’t need bling. You need a purpose for the site to fulfill that makes it worth the trouble it took (and the money it costs) to keep it around.
Sorry, ouija has no special extra insight.
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