Do You Really Need a Web Site?

Written by Janice Byer


Continued from page 1

Limitrepparttar use of unnecessary graphics and pictures. Of course, if you are selling a product that needs to be seen, such as clothing, these pictures should be included but try to keep them as small as possible. This will keeprepparttar 134780 loading time down on your site. However, if you sell automotive aftermarket products, or any other large line of products, don't put a picture of every brake line and fuse on your site. Including too many graphics will slow down your site and waiting for pictures to load is not something that most busy people have time for. Again, they will go somewhere else for help.

As for advertising other pages on your site, there are many avenues than can be used, including banner exchanges. These are a great form of getting additional free advertising, but don't load down your site with an infinite amount of banners or links. If possible, dedicate a page to display your banners, webrings and favorite links. This will help reducerepparttar 134781 clutter on your information pages.

These hints are justrepparttar 134782 tip ofrepparttar 134783 iceberg. There are many more ways to make your site appealing, more than can be listed in a single article. Research and using an experienced web designer can make your presence onrepparttar 134784 Internet appealing and informative.

Remember, above all else, make your site with your visitor in mind, whether they are Internet newbies or seasoned surfers. Your site needs to attract new visitors and it needs to keep them coming back.

Janice Byer is the founder of Docu-Type Administrative Services http://www.docutype.net, an off-site office assistance company that specializes in word processing, desktop publishing and website development. Contact them today at (905)584-1746 or mailto:jbyer@docutype.net to learn how they can help YOU meet & exceed the expectations of YOUR customers.


Viewpoint on Usability

Written by Mimi Brooks


Continued from page 1

-Work processes and workflow to be streamlined -Costs to be reduced or revenue generated -Desired behavior to be predicted and measured -Competitive differentiation to be defined and tracked -Service levels to be established -Brand to be built through a targeted, positive user experience

Simply stated, a well-designed, user-centric web site reflectsrepparttar priorities ofrepparttar 134779 business and representsrepparttar 134780 business model ofrepparttar 134781 company or organization.

Usability. It's part ofrepparttar 134782 big picture.

For systems integrators and Internet architects,repparttar 134783 challenge is to integrate usability into an e-commerce strategy and subsequently into a project lifecycle, so that it becomes an integral part ofrepparttar 134784 overall planning, design, development, testing, and launch. This is easier said than done. When systems integrators claim to conduct "usability testing," it's safe to assume that this is a distinctively separate activity, performed generally atrepparttar 134785 END ofrepparttar 134786 project. While this is better than nothing, of course, it is but notrepparttar 134787 optimal approach, and it will offer only limited benefits torepparttar 134788 overall product.

User requirements need to be assessed early inrepparttar 134789 analysis stage of an e-commerce initiative, so that usability is considered throughoutrepparttar 134790 project lifecycle. Issues likerepparttar 134791 impact on workflow, expectations in navigation, "logical and intuitive" site design and content management, andrepparttar 134792 behavior we want to enable orrepparttar 134793 expectations we need to design to are huge considerations. This is combined withrepparttar 134794 technical architecture, transactional requirements, and performance expectations, and is synthesized -- exploited -- to achieve maximum user benefit in areas such as user profiling and personalization, dynamic content assembly, and interactivity.

Certainly, usability should never "dumb down" requirements torepparttar 134795 lowest common denominator in an attempt to satisfy "every user." Onrepparttar 134796 contrary, usability should no longer be considered as a way to prevent potential problems, but rather, an approach that realizes greater possibilities. Usability should challenge and pushrepparttar 134797 envelope equally as hard asrepparttar 134798 technical, business, and creative requirements. Only then do we break through with an innovative, engaging, clever, and effective web site.

Business Model. That'srepparttar 134799 bottom line.

Creating a compelling user experience has a direct tie to market competitiveness. It's fair to say that usability should, in all cases, support, augment, and enablerepparttar 134800 realization ofrepparttar 134801 business model. Happy users aren'trepparttar 134802 true objective, although certainly, it's a desirable by-product. Rather, realized business goals through targeted usability objectives make usability a straightforward business case.

Mimi Brooks, founder, president and CEO of Logical Design Solutions (www.lds.com), a leading provider of Internet professional services to the Fortune 500.


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