Sometimes wacky is good.  Sometimes being different is good.  But often, following convention is better.

Why convention is a good thing

(we’re talking about websites here by the way…)

• People know where to find things.  So they don’t feel silly & fed-up not being able to find what they want
• People focus on the content, not the design.  On taking action, not on sitting back & admiring the graphics.  That’s what you want them to do… isn’t it?
• People feel safe, they know where they’re going, what they’re doing.  So they are that smidgen more likely to trust you.

All of what I’ve said so far depends very much on your business – that goes without saying (but I thought I’d say it anyway).  But for the most part, people want quality, reliability, service – over wackiness and off-the-wall-ness.  In my experience.

Conventions you should follow

There are many, but here are just three examples for web design:

• Menu – a consistent, site-wide menu, usually along the top of the page or down the left hand side of the screen
• Links – either in a different colour (often blue) or underlined – or both.  Don’t have other text in the default ‘link’ blue – people will think it’s a link!
• Logo – at the top of the page, and very often to the left; always links back to the website home page.

So your website is looking a little tired and you want a beautiful new design.  It’ll give your business just the boost it needs.  It will really freshen things up.

Really?

Stop a minute.  What’s your website there to do?  Impress people with its good looks or prompt visitors to action?  The two aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive, but in 99% of cases, I’m guessing you want the second option more.

Which is why how your website looks is not so very important.  Design isn’t just about making things look pretty.  It isn’t even mainly about making things look pretty.  It’s about sorting out how that website is going to function.  How it’s going to deliver results.

So before you dive head first into a new design, run through these questions…



• Who is your audience?  And by that I mean the ones that are actually going to help you achieve something.
• What is your message to this audience?
• What do you want these people to end up doing before they leave your website?
• What compelling content do you have that will cause people to take that action?
• What signposts do you have in place on your website to guide people in the right direction – towards that compelling content?
• What mechanisms do you have to direct people from one piece of content to another?
• What calls to action do you have in place that will prompt visitors to take that final step towards the goal?



You’ll notice none of the above are about how pretty your website looks.  An ugly, well designed site will achieve more than a pretty site with a flaky design.



So, stop looking at the design and start using it – because that’s what you want your visitors to do.


Isn’t it?



Are you scaring people away from your website?!

Pretty much any website designer will agree with me that clear, consistent navigation is key to making a website usable.

But a couple of client meetings recently have got me thinking about this.  Often a website will have grown over time, and the obvious thing to do, when new content is created, is to create a new page, link it from the main menu, and hey presto, job done!

Over time, this can result in an unwieldy beast of a website, with masses of valuable content, but no clear direction to the user as to where they should go.  ‘No clear direction?’, I hear you saying, ‘But you just said everything was linked from the main navigation.  Surely that’s clear direction!’.

Nope.  Sorry, but for the vast majority of people**, being faced with a huge swathe of menu options is overwhelming – particularly if you’re just ‘browsing’.  Imagine if the BBC linked all their website content from the main homepage.  That would be one big menu!

So what’s the answer?

Here is one approach:



1. Get rid of the Big Scary Monster

Strip down the main menu to what’s really important, or the ‘main categories’ of content.  Use drop down menus where necessary, but beware of turning that menu into a big scary monster!



2. Add a Functional Menu?

Consider having a separate, smaller ‘functional’ menu (you’ll often see them in the top right hand corner of the screen), for important but ‘functional’ stuff – often for existing customers.  Things that might go on your functional menu – ‘login’, ‘about us’, ‘contact us’.



3. Page specific menus

Although I’ve always been a big believer in consistent navigation across a website, this doesn’t mean to say that you can’t have page specific menus where appropriate.  The key here is to keep these secondary menus consistent in style and position, and keep them consistent for a given group of pages.


For example, you may have ten pages which are all about the history, ethos, and background to your organisation.  Rather than having ‘About Us’ with a drop down of 10 items in the main menu, how about ‘About Us’ simply linking to a page with an introductory paragraph and a secondary menu, either above the text or in a side column, with all those ten pages listed.  That secondary menu remains consistent across those 10 pages.


That way, the user is less likely to be overwhelmed (and thus not read any of the content) – they’ve only got one option in the main menu to click.  When they click, they’ve got some introductory text to read if they want to, and they’ve got the 10 options immediately available.



4. Sign Post

Use banners and side columns to ‘sign-post’.  Don’t fill these with rubbish!  And don’t overload them.  But a header banner and a side column offer valuable opportunities to point people to where you want them to go.  A header banner will be one of the first things the user sees – so think carefully about your main goal for that page, and focus the banner on that.


The side column is a great place to sign post to resources (linked to the content within the main page body), linked or related posts/content, and to give a subscription option – email newsletter sign-up for example.  In other words, it’s there waiting for people to finish reading and giving them some ‘what do you want to do now?’ options.



5. Use Editorial Links

This leads on from the ‘what do you want to do now?’ point.  Stuff in the side column can often be overlooked by the user.  But if they’re reading your page or post, they will likely notice any links you put within the content.  This takes time and effort, but it’s worth doing. [Note to self here!!!]  Often a link at the end of the post, to a related article or page, will prove very effective in keeping the user interested – at the point at which the natural ‘next action’ is to hit the back button.


This works well in conjunction with the page specific menus described above.  At the end of each ‘sub-page’, have a sentence which leads the user onto the next obvious page.  That way, they’ll be navigating through the content, without even realising they’re using a navigation system.  It’s an approach that’s very much akin to flipping through the pages in a book, rather than looking everything up in the index or table of contents.

Now go do!

I hope that’s useful… now try applying that to your own website!

** There are people who prefer this way of doing things, and like every single option presented to them from the outset.  But I’d argue that even then, you need to show them (albeit in a subconscious way), which are the important options.  So if they don’t have a pre-conceived idea of where to go, you’re giving them some subtle guidance.

Your website is an important part of your toolbox for promoting and selling your business.  But remember that many people that see your website might never have seen you face to face.

The internet is a big place, so it’s crucial you make it easy for people to trust you.

10 Checkpoints

If they’re searching for what you’re offering, then you’re already in a good position – they’re looking for someone they can buy from, they can trust.  Make the most of it and ensure your ‘credibility rating’ is rock solid with these dos and don’ts:

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It’s been a while since I’ve written at length here…eek! Mainly down to being nice & busy with work, which can’t be a bad thing. Time to make up for it though… here are a few thoughts on something which is actually quite important – how to make the most of visitors once they’ve arrived on your website.

People invest a lot of time & effort in driving visitors to their website. It’s not always easy. So it’s ultra important that when you succeed in that goal, you then maximise the opportuity while a visitor is on your site.

Self Serving?

It’s not quite as self-serving as it first appears. Remember, the user always has a back button, so whatever you do has got to be of use and valid in the eyes of your visitor. It’s not about making it really hard for the user to find what they’re looking for, so they have to search for ages – chances are, they won’t, they’ll use the back button and go elsewhere. But by the same token, it’s not just about giving everything away and not expecting anything back.

Their Goal or Yours?

Consider why people may be coming to your website. What are they looking for? Why are they there? You need to fulfil that need.

But also consider what your goals are for your website visitors. You need to fulfil that need too. Don’t assume the two sets of goals are the same.

An Example

Rather than going through the theory, let’s illustrate the point.

My goal for a gardening tips website might simply be to get people to sign up for a newsletter, so I can then stay in touch & publicise special offers & discounts.

A potential user may arrive at the site to find an answer to a gardening question. They have no intention of signing up to a newsletter.

One option would be to give them a chunk of an article, half answering their query, then make them signup if they want to read the rest. In my eyes: BAD IDEA. They’ve probably never seen the website before, don’t know who you are, and immediate demands for sign-up will make most people very uneasy.

A second, more effective option, would be to give them the article that answers their queries – make it worth reading and professional. Having answered their query, you’re then in a good position – you’ve earnt some respect. Make the most of it with some ‘signposts’ to, for example:

• other, related articles – linked perhaps from the bottom of the one they’ve just read. Lists of ’10 most popular posts’ or category lists are good here too. (What this does: visitor stays on site for longer, builds more respect points)

• downloadable guide/whitepaper/template/other resource. (What this does: builds more respect, visitor then has local record of your brand, website & contact details – assuming you put them on the download! Thus more likely to re-visit)

• Twitter feed, Facebook page, LinkedIn profile. (What this does: even if visitors don’t signup first time around, they’re starting to get more of a feel for who you are – and what other people think about you)

• Your newsletter signup form. Not everyone will sign-up on first visit, but the point at which you will get people to sign-up is when you’ve gained their respect. Add an incentive relevant to the user’s goal. (What this does: you’ve achieved your goal!)

Hmm… writing this has made me realise how much my own site could be improved in this respect

Are you listening?

Effective public speaking is a skill, a talent (and one that unfortunately I don’t possess in abundance).

They’ve got your attention, you’re focussed on what they’re saying, and you’re listening with rapt attention as they tell their story.  At that point, the speaker is in a pretty powerful position.

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Download Blog Planning Template here (MS Excel file)

So you’ve decided to start blogging. Or you’ve been told that Google likes regularly updated content on your website. Tis true, and what’s more, users like it too.

But before you launch into the blogosphere, do me a favour and stop to think awhile. For this reason – it looks a bit half-hearted if users arrive at your website only to see five or six posts that were written in a burst of energy a year and a half ago, and then… nothing.

Establishing and maintaining a blog requires effort. I actually find writing posts, articles, newsletters pretty enjoyable. But it does require some dedication.

Here are a few tips I’ve picked up along the way:

• Start as you mean to go on. Don’t start with a bang and then fizzle out. Think about how much time you can realistically commit on a regular basis to your blog or website. If that’s just an hour once a month, then fine – but keep it consistent. That way, users know what to expect.




• Have a set time in your diary once a day/week/month when you’ll update your website/blog. Set a reminder in your calendar so you can’t avoid it! Ok, so this is real life, so things will crop up that mean you can’t always do what you’d planned. But you can make sure you fill in the gaps as soon as you have a spare moment.




• Think about where you’ll be getting your ideas from. Here are just a few suggestions, I’m sure you’ll come up with more:
  • Keep an eye at what’s going on in your industry/sector and share your opinions
  • Share some of the knowledge you use when working with your clients
  • Answer the questions that you had when first starting out in the industry
  • Share a solution you’ve arrived as a result of a problem in your day-to-day work




• Create a schedule with dates, future post titles and ideas – sit down every two or three months & plan out future posts. Print it out & pin it on your notice board – no getting away from it then! I started out with this strategy this year, and it’s incredible the difference it’s made to the regularity of posts on my blog!




• If you’re limited on time, consider one of these options:
  • Rather than long, in-depth posts, just keep an eye out for useful, informative or engaging posts by other writers – and then link to them, with your own thoughts & comments on the subject
  • Re-use content you may already have accumulated – articles, user guides, press releases, etc. But make sure they’re interesting, up-to-date and relevant!
  • Find someone else to blog for you – there are companies that will offer this as a regular service to clients. Ideally, you’ll sit down to discuss & agree topics in advance. Work out who will be doing the research, and what input is required from you.




• Remember to publicise as well as write! Use article publishing sites; put a link to your blog in your email signature; use Social Media to tell people about your new post; link back to posts from your newsletter; and tell everyone you know about your blog & where to find it!

I created a blog schedule template for my own use, and have posted it here so you can take advantage of it too. It’s nothing complicated – have a look and adapt it to your own liking. Click here to download Blog Schedule Template (MS Excel file).

I don’t know about you, but I find it frustrating when Google returns a site in the search engine results which looks promising in relation to what I’m searching for – only to find when I get there that it’s not at all what I was looking for. Grrr!

Obviously, despite the amazing technological feat it has attained, Google is not perfect – and never will be. But site owners can help it on its way – and gain the trust of users at the same time.

Consider what it is your users are looking for. I’m not talking in-depth scientific research here –more just employing some common sense for half an hour. Once you’ve worked out what your users are looking for, you have to supply that need – and let Google know, through your site meta data, headings, etc – what it is that’s on your site.

Example: A Local Primary School

A while back, I built a website for a local primary school (www.dry-sandford.oxon.sch.uk). Rather than simply putting a fresh look over the old website, we sat down & thought what people would actually be looking for, and what people would find useful.

Here are a few examples of what we came up with:

• Existing parents – likely to be looking for latest news on school closures, club updates, when school photos are going to be taken, the list goes on… So throughout the website, we have a ‘Status board’ which the school secretary regularly updates – so parents can immediately see latest news
• Existing parents again – finding a school dinner money order form might be useful if the one in Ben’s bag got a bit worse for wear while said bag was used for a football goal after school. So we have a School Office area – where forms, newsletters, etc are all uploaded & accessible to parents for download & printing.
• Prospective parents – the obvious one is comprehensive details of the school, its ethos, structure and more. But we felt it important that prospective parents get a ‘feel’ for the school – so we’ve used a lot of images and also got children involved in creating audio clips – so their voice is heard on the site too.

Are you at odds with your users?

Bear in mind though – sometimes what your users are looking for, and what you want to give them, might be two different things. Maybe they’re just looking for information, whereas you are looking to sell.

In many cases, a hard sell to someone who is just looking for information, will fall flat on its face. The trick is to start gaining that person’s trust, proving your expertise in the field, supplying a certain amount of information – so that you then start to earn the right to pitch to that user – usually at a later date.

Consider how you can create incentives which will encourage the user to come back to your site, to stay in touch. Think about how you could get users to register their email address on your site, so you then have a means to keep in touch. The golden rule here is to remember that users are NOT stupid – and that’s why it’s important you gain people’s trust, provide something of value – to avoid them feeling like they’re been used, or conned into some marketing programme.