Archive for June, 2008

Writing for the Web

Published
by
ilse
on June 30, 2008
in How To's
. Closed

One of the best things about the web is the almost endless real estate available for you to populate with content. For the most part it doesn’t cost you much - but it could cost you customers if your content is not presented effectively!

Deborah Zanke of Message Communications offers some great advice for those about to embark on writing content for their websites.The biggest mistake organizations make with their websites is with writing that isn’t suited for the online world. There is a lot of research out there that has tracked how people use the Web and what they read on a given page. What we know is that people are very purpose oriented online. They are looking for specific information. They want to find that information and get out. If they can’t find the information they are looking for quickly, they bounce from a site and look for a better resource.

Why people visit your site

Visitors don’t want to read your mission statement or explore the particular philosophy you have on your industry. They want to know what you can do for them, how to access your goods/services and where to find you. You have to write the content on your website to fit this reality.

Style

Eye tracking studies indicate that online readers do not read entire pages of text. They scan a page to see if what they are looking for is there. Again, reading is purpose-oriented. Make it easy for your visitors by following these tips:

  • Be concise -
    Write half the number of words you would use in a paper document–even less if you can. Sentences should be short. Paragraphs should be no longer than two or three sentences. If your reader has to scroll down the page to read, you’re likely going to lose them.
  • Use headings -
    Headlines help readers find what they are looking for so use them as often as you can.
  • Use bullet points
    - Also helps scanning readers and breaks up your text for easy reading.
  • Bold key terms - Easier for scanning because they’ll stand out.

Testing

Remember that you are immersed in your business and so, to you, everything about it is interesting and engaging. That’s why it’s hard to cut down the content on your website. The best way to prove to yourself that you have the right amount and kind of content on your site is to test it. Analyze how your site is being used–what pages are visited frequently as well as those that get few visits. Get customers to offer their feedback on your site–what do they find most useful?

Great websites are a marriage between design and writing

Without content that meets your visitor’s needs, even the most flashy and well-designed site will not get the attention you want. Design and writing need equal attention.You can read more good advise on communicating effectively at www.messagecommunications.ca

Web 2.0 Design Style

Published
by
ilse
on June 5, 2008
in Design
. Closed

Makes for Happy Surfing Seniors

Web 2.0 “style” is distinctively - fresh, appealing and easy to use. It boasts certain asthetics that are - without question - ideal for the ever-growing population of seniors surfing the net. We recently launched a site for My Care Necessities
A Healthcare Journal for Seniors. This site exhibits all the best qualities of web 2.0 - while nicely accommodating the demographic it’s marketing to.Clear Print is an accessible design standard for printed items ranging from magazines to computer screens. The 10 variables explained in Clear Print can affect readers who have difficulty reading print - an increasingly large segment of today’s market. A good resource for those marketing to seniors can be found here. CNIB offers excellent guidelines. Using a more readable, universal typeface for products like these, and incorporating some other simple design modifications, ultimately means increased independence, access, safety and enjoyment of life for people with vision loss.

Here is my short-list of top web 2.0 asthetics that work great for seniors-friendly websites:

Number 1: NICE BIG TEXT

What senior wouldn’t like that? I’m not saying that all the text on your website should be supersize. In fact, in some scenarios, small text is fine. But good designs make the most important text on the page bigger than normal text. Like the other design techniques we’ve seen, it works when used in moderation. If all your text is big, then none of your text is big. Use bigger text to help your visitors see quickly what the page is about, what’s most important, and figure out where they want to look next to find what they want.

Number 2: Plenty of whitespace

We all need space. Space helps us clearly and cleanly identify things. It helps people–especially users who are “new” users of the internet - find what they are looking for. Nothing is harder than finding something in a drawer full of clutter. The more white space the better.

Number 3: Design the content

Good modern web designs put less energy into designing the page background - the canvas and permanent page features - and rather focus on designing the content itself. This reflects the principle of drawing the viewer’s attention to the content. The focus is on making the site’s subject look good, rather than making the web designer look good.

Number 4: Strong colours

Strong colours draw the eye and make things easier to read. We use them to divide the page into clear sections, and to highlight important elements.