Joe, fellow you're talking with, says, "Here's a guy you should meet." As you approach, you notice Gucci shoes and Armani suit right off.

"Hi, Jeffery," Joe says. As man turns, Joe continues. "Want you to meet Bill Cathers."

The handshake is firm. The smile is gracious and it somehow shows in his eyes. You clearly have his full attention.

Joe has wandered off as you chat. "Have you a card?" Jeffery asks, offering one of his own.

"Sure," you say as you hand him one, taking his.

As if from nowhere, Jeffery tenders a hundred dollar bill. "It's yours for ten bucks," he says with a mischievous grin.

You hesitate, more intrigued than skeptical. Then you fish a ten dollar bill from your wallet and swap it for hundred.

"Got it yet?" Jeffery asks with that grin locked in.

You shake your head, grinning back, wondering why you are doing so.

"I just want to give you a call tomorrow. Deal?"

"Sure," you reply, still grinning, as Jeffery turns away to speak to another man.

Another Case

It's growing darker by minute and you're in a part of town in which you know you shouldn't be. As you hurry down sidewalk, an old man lurches into your path. All you notice of him is ragged, torn and tattered coat that seems about to shred and fall to ground. He smells awful. And his eyes don't seek yours.

"Ya can have it for a ten spot," he mumbles, extending a hundred dollar bill.

Without breaking stride you step around old man and continue hurriedly down street.

Now when I look back on that first website, I'm forced to come to an inescapable conclusion:

It sucked.

You see, like so many beginners, I had succumbed to lure of 'technology'. Instead of designing my site according to what my *visitors* wanted, I designed it around what *I* wanted to show off.

Don't make these common website blunders! Visitors come to your site for a reason - make it easy for them to get what they want. Here are a few tips ...

__1. Don't Use Flash Frivolously.

Flash movies are all rage these days. Sure, it's new and cool and can do all sorts of neat things - but just because you CAN use it doesn't mean you SHOULD.

This is particularly true of content-rich websites. Visitors come to your site looking for information, not for an in-your-face Flash movie. Annoy them and it only takes a simple click of mouse before they're gone forever.

Flash requires users to download a plug-in, if they don't already have it. It can chew up your machine's resources and make it darn near impossible to get out - even a 'Skip Intro' link is hard to click on if your computer is too involved with Flash! And it takes too long to load. Not everyone has a high-speed modem!

Of course there are legitimate reasons to use Flash. For example, graphic artists or web designers who sell their Flash talents will want to showcase it. If you use it make sure you give people OPTION of viewing it or not. A couple of suggestions are:

* Put two links on your entry page: one to view site using Flash, other to view it without Flash.

* Move your Flash movies deeper within your site. If your visitor wants to view them, they can simply click on a link.

__2. Use Graphics Sparingly.