|
Keywords |
|
10 Ways Websites Make Me Suffer
By Jason OConnor (c) 2004 Oak Web Works
1. Animation
Seven
year-olds like watching animated cartoons on Saturday morning, business people,
professionals and most other adults don't. Sites that include showy Flash
animations as an 'Intro', animated gifs on every page, or flying words are
really annoying. They take away from the content and distract the visitor
from achieving their goals. Unless your site is an entertainment site, try
to avoid maddening motion. However, if your product or service can be better
demonstrated using Flash, Quick Time, or other multimedia, which is common,
offer your visitors the chance to clïck a link to view it. But don't force
them.
2. Too Much Scrolling
Once I scroll down a full screen's worth,
my eyes start to blur, I feel slightly lost, my head spins and my interest
wanes. Computer monitors really aren't the best medium for reading. The Net
and many sites are so big that it's important to always provide a clear frame
of reference for your visitors at all times while they're on your site. If
a page requires two full screens of scrolling or more, simply split it up
into multiple pages.
3. Long, Text-Heavy
and Blocky Paragraphs of Unbroken Text
I
really have to be into a topic or desperately need to glean the information
to trudge through big chunks of unbroken text online. If I'm just shopping
around for a product or service, you've lost me if I have to endure this kind
of torture. Again, it is harder to read text on the Web than in other mediums
such as books. Additionally, Web users are notoriously impatient, so make
your content easy to read and non-intimidating. Use titles, sub-titles, small
paragraphs, bullets and numbering.
4. No Obvious Ways to
Contact The Company
If all you supply
is an email on your website, your legitimacy may be questioned. Why can't
you answer the phonë? Why hide behind an anonymous and cold email address?
Make it easy for your existing and potential customers to talk with you.
5. Unchanging or Out-Dated
Content
If I start reading content on
a site and soon discover that the content was written three years ago, I split.
Since there's so much information out there, my reasoning is there's got to
be comparable information online that's more current. If you keep your content
fresh your site will attract repeat visitors. And repeat visitors are more
likely to turn into customers.
6. Long Page Downloads
It's amazing that this is still a problem.
When I clïck on to a site and have to sit there waiting for it to appear in
my browser, I start sweating, picking my teeth, tapping my toes, rolling my
eyes and soon want to throw my computer through my office window. I'm obviously
a little impatient, but again, I know there are other sites out there with
the same information that will download more quickly, so why wait? I'm gone.
7. "Me, me, me!" instead
of "You, you, you"
Generally speaking,
no one cares about you, your company or your thoughts. What they do care about
is what you can do for them. So sites that show pictures of the company building
or tout their deep philosophy on the way business should be conducted really
don't bode well for keeping the interest of site visitors. On the other hand,
sites that speak directly to potential customers about how they can solve
their problems, make their lives easier, safer, richer or more comfortable
have a much better chance of keeping the eyeballs glued.
8. Non-Explanatory Buttons
or Links
Here are some examples of buttons
that leave me dazed and confused: A wedding site with a button called 'Blanks',
a boating site with a button named 'The Lighthouse', a book site with a button
called 'The Inside Story', or a Web design site with a button called 'Tea
Time'. They sound like Jeopardy categories. Imagine trying to find your way
on a highway where its various signs read 'Over Here', 'Moon Beams', and 'Lollypops'.
Good luck navigating your way through. It's the same with navigating websites.
Button and link names need to tell the visitor where the link leads to. Make
it as easy as possible for a visitor to know where they're going before they
clïck. However, there are times when naming a link an ambiguous name may pique
the curiosity of a user and get them to clïck on it. But as a general rule,
keep your links and buttons as descriptive as possible.
9. Inconsistent Navigation
Imagine sitting down at a restaurant and
the waiter comes over to you and hands you five different menus, one for the
appetizers, one for the soups and salads, one for the entrees, one for the
desserts, and one for the drinks. Annoying. Then imagine if each menu had
a different format, layout and method for listing the items. Brutal. I really
don't want to work that hard at picking out my dinner, I'm hungry and I just
want a meal. Don't make your visitors work hard either by expecting them to
re-learn your navigation system each time they enter another section of your
site. They too are hungry; for useful information and they're even more impatient.
10. Inconsistent Look
& Feel
When the look & feel completely
changes from one page to another in a website, I think I am visiting another
site, another company, a partner or subsidiary. I get very confused. This
screams poor planning and often results from tacking on new sections later
after the original site was built. This can lead to design-drift. It may be
tempting to stray from the original design; you may currently have a better
design. But wait till you do a complete next-generation re-design of the entire
site before introducing a new look & feel. If not, lots of visitors will be
scratching their heads with one hand and possibly clicking away with the other.
Finally, any site that employs a number of these notorious features is particularly painful to experience. When I clïck to a website that has five different fonts and colors, scrolls down to the core of the Earth, incorporates zinging words and big fat blocks of text, lists no phonë number and has content written and dated in 1996, I scream and know deep down inside that pulling my fingernails out wouldn't be as torturous as having to remain there a minute longer.
Coaching questions? email
me
WEB TOOLS HOME
PAY PER CLICKS - BLOGGING
- SITE HOSTING - INDEXING
SEARCH ENGINES
HOME - JOIN
IN - FUN STUFF - FREE
CLASSIFIEDS - WEBSITE HOSTING - REAL
ESTATE - SHOP ONLINE