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Business Tip of the Month

Business Tip
of the Month
For the month of February 2006


Five problems to avoid on your business's Web site

Almost all businesses have Web sites, but not all Web sites work well. Here are five common problems to avoid.

1. Lack of clear focus. Before you build a site, you must define what visitors want from it. Do they come to your site to find out about the business in general, to see what products you offer, to comparison shop, or to actually buy products? Perhaps visitors want technical questions answered, or perhaps they just need contact information. The answer is probably some combination of these. But unless you define your primary purposes, you’ll finish up with an unwieldy site that’s confusing to visitors.
2. Poor navigation within the site. When visitors reach your home page, they want to quickly locate the information they need. If they get lost or reach too many dead ends, they’ll give up and go elsewhere. A clear navigation system is essential. It should be consistent throughout all of your Web pages. Keep the home page relatively uncluttered except for a welcome and a site map or index.
3. Too many high-tech gimmicks. Video clips and fade-in/fade-out graphics may look spectacular, but they make the site slow to load. Most visitors are in a hurry and would prefer to go straight to the information they need without delays. An obvious exception is for companies in the graphic design or Web site fields, which might want to showcase their creative computer skills.
4. Too much information. Don’t try to cram every single thing about your business onto your Web site. It’s much better to provide key information, plus a simple way to communicate with your company if visitors want to know more. The same rule applies to individual Web pages. Avoid dense blocks of text or pages overcrowded with detail.
5. Inconsistent formats. If fonts, colors, and text sizes vary from page to page, it creates a subconscious impression of jumble and disorganization. Follow the example of successful interior designers. When they furnish a house, they subtly repeat colors, textures, and patterns from room to room to create a pleasing whole. Your Web site should do the same.

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