Building blocks to
a great website…

By putting these key elements in place along with some clever copy it’s sure to make your site a compelling read…and don’t forget your call to action! Take a look at our quick check list of building blocks to a great website to see if yours fits the bill:

Site design

It is important to have a distinct style that flows throughout your whole website to not only guide the reader through but to create a professional finish to your site, making the user believe that you are a viable option for their business. This would include font styles and sizes, titles and headings, diagrams and photos/images as well. One way of doing this is to use Cascading Style Sheets in the structure of your pages (CSS). This is the framework that your content sits within – your text, graphics, photos, etc. By creating a smooth flow through your website for the reader you will encourage them to view more and hopefully purchase at the end of their search for information.

Content drives your readers!

Writing for the web is different to writing for printed communications because it not only drives sales through people reading the content, but can lead people to the content in the first place via various search engines. We all scan through content on the web looking for what we’re after rather than reading word-for-word. So when you write copy for your website there are a few things to remember:

The richer the quality of the content that you have on your site - the more chance you have of being found in search engines.
Choose headings carefully that closely relate to the content so that the reader is led to where they want to go and can see what each section of the page is about quickly.
Bold or underline important words, so that users can find your information fast within a page.
Add links to relevant parts of your site or to other websites to further information for the user but don’t litter the page with them as this inhibits reading.
Use bullets points as they are usually more succinct.
Make sure you have a ‘call for action’ – a way for the user to buy your product/services and contact information - visible from every page.

Navigation is important

Primary navigation can be one of the most powerful tools to orientate users on your website as it leads the user to site sections via your main menu. This ‘main menu’ can be a set of labelled tabs or a list at the top or side of your home page that guides the user through the information you have to offer them. Secondary navigation can then be used to further define a path for the user to more detailed or specific sets of information. This is visible from the webpage of their choice via another ‘menu’ which might be at the side or bottom of their selected webpage.

As well as moving forwards through the website ease of moving backwards is also essential! Clearly visible back buttons on each page are usually the best option so that the user can quickly review something that he might have missed or wishes to read again for clarity without searching again.

Make your site accessible

Your can check these tips with your website designer if your not technically savvy!

Aim to comply with W3C Guidelines.
Check in multiple browsers such as Internet Explorer, Firefox and Safari.
Use W3C complaint html code and check your style sheets for errors!
Ensure your fonts are not a fixed size and you use the % setting so they are scaleable.
All you images should use the Alt text, so when you roller over the picture, descriptive text of the image will appear.
One important item to note is that the web is constantly evolving, so standards are constantly being updated.
Flash - Try to avoid using flash on your website as it can take time for it to load and you may lose your user in the intervening moment! Also content within a flash player will not be picked up by search engines looking for information on your website.

Site map

Site maps are not essential for small websites where you may have around 10 pages say, BUT they are totally necessary for sites with a lot of pages of information. Your site map must be clear, precise and reflect the site structure – a bulleted list usually works well under sub-headings. This can then be used as a last resort (or perhaps first!) by a user who hasn’t found what they are looking for by browsing and searching your site.

To discover how we can assist your business
with an engaging website, contact us.