Half day course looking at how to get the best from your website.

1. Getting Real Results from
your Website

2. Aims of the Session
This session aims to equip you with an understanding of what
makes a successful website and how human and technical
elements achieve this
Your Presenter - Pauline Randall – Florizel Media Ltd

3. Housekeeping
• Timing of session
• Fire Alarm and Fire Exit
• Other administration
• Introductions

4. Workshop Objectives
• As a result of this session, you will be able to:
• Explain what makes a good website
• Criticise your own website and others, taking into account equal
opportunities legislation which applies to websites
• Set measurable and achievable goals for your website
• Prepare a high level brief for a new or revised site
• Prepare a brief and work with suppliers to create an effective site

5. What Makes a Good Website?
• Clearly defined purpose
• Content – relevant and up to date
• Design – look and usability
• Accessibility
• Domain name
• Contact-ability

6. Think about what
works….

12. More BAD websites…
www.webpagesthatsuck.com/worst-websites-of-the-year.html
http://web.archive.org/web/20110718150425/http://yvettesbridalformal.com/

13. WHAT’S THE PURPOSE OF
YOUR SITE?

14. Clearly defined purpose
• What do you want website visitors to do?
• Buy something?
• Book something?
• Call you?
• Fill in a form?
• Like you
• Comment on something
• Tell their friends
• Write down what the intended purpose of YOUR website is

15. What Should My Site Contain?
• Clear contact information
• Enough product/service information
• Personal touches – where appropriate
• Real life – reviews, testimonials
• Added value – downloads, articles, resources
• Innovate!

16. CONTENT

17. Relevant and current
In order to fulfil your website’s purpose what sort of content do
you need?
• Product information – range, price etc
• Service information – what do you offer?
• Contact details
• Address
• Phone number, email address
• Frequently asked questions
• Video
• Images
• Testimonials
• A blog
• Terms of service and privacy policy

18. DESIGN AND USABILITY

19. Key points
• Site layout
• Navigation – don’t forget that not all visitors arrive on the home page
• Brand consistency – colours, logo etc
• Images – size, relevance
• Think of your target audience
• Mobile versions – how will a visitor using a smartphone or a tablet
navigate your site?

20. Planning site layout
• Create an information flow diagram
• How do site topics relate to each other?
• How would you navigate the site?
• How will your customers navigate the site?

21. Hard to read
How to create content for the Web Environment
There are a number of critical factors in creating content for the web. First of all, be
succinct. This is important as people read information on computer monitors 25%
slower than on paper. One approach is to write your copy then to try to reduce it by at
least a quarter.
Next is to make your text scanable. For this use such techniques as strong headlines,
bullet point lists, tables, links and bolded words.
It is always advisable to use plain language that everyone can understand and keep
your labels as meaningful as possible to avoid confusion. Also, try to keep to one idea
per paragraph and try to avoid having too many ideas on one page as this can be
confusing.
And finally, try to use sans serif fonts in your website as they are more legible online
than traditional serif fonts. It is also worth remembering to keep all text high contrast
and highly legible if you want the user to read it as quickly as possible.

22. Easier to read
How to create content for the web environment
There are a number of critical factors in creating content for the web. First of all, be succinct. This is important as
people read information on computer monitors 25% slower than on paper. One approach is to write your copy
then to try to reduce it by at least a quarter.
Next is to make your text scanable. For this use such techniques as
Strong headlines
Bullet point lists
Tables
Links
Bolded words
Keep it clear
Use straightforward language, stick to one subject per paragraph and don’t try and get everything onto one page.
Watch your fonts
And finally, try to use sans serif fonts in your website as they are more legible online than traditional serif fonts. It
is also worth remembering to keep all text high contrast and highly legible if you want the user to read it as quickly
as possible.

23. Usability testing
Get some people who don’t know their way around your site to
do some testing
• Ask them to find something
• Get them to go through the buying/enquiry process
• Find out what they thought of your navigation/design etc
There are sites that will run usability tests for you – you may get
more honest answers than you will from your friends!

24. ACCESSIBILITY

25. Accessibility
Consider the type of physical disability your site visitor may have
that makes it difficult to use a standard computer:
• Visual – poor eyesight, colour blindness or total blindness
• Motor – difficulty in using a keyboard, mouse or making precise
movements
• Cognitive – difficulty in understanding the language or the
context of the information given.

26. Accessibility
Technical issues which may affect the viewing of your site include:
• Small screens
• Slow connection
• Old software
• Old web browsers
Refer to BS8878 for current guidelines http://www.access8878.co.uk/
Website accessibility checker: http://wave.webaim.org/

27. Colour contrast
Avoid this
Aim for this
Or this
Or this
If you’re not sure - http://webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker/

28. DOMAIN NAMES

29. Consider the following …
www.thisismywebsiteindunfermlineandimakecakes.co.uk
www.maryscakes.co.uk
Think of what happens when you remove the spaces…
A database of talent representatives called Who Represents?
www.whorepresents.com

30. http://www.classiccakes.co.uk/ http://www.classiccakes.org/ http://www.classic-cakes.com/

31. GET IN TOUCH

32. Give your customers choices
• Not everyone wants to phone or email so try and give your visitors
a choice
• A contact form
• An email address
• A physical address
• A phone number
• And make it easy for them to find – it shouldn’t take a lot of
searching to find your contact details.

33. MARKETING

34. You need to be found!
• Online
• Content
• Keywords
• Titles and descriptions
• Blogs
• Pay Per Click (PPC)
• Social media
• Email signature
• Offline
• Any printed materials
• Business cards
• Brochures
• Pop-up banners
• Print advertising

35. CREATING YOUR WEBSITE
Having defined your purpose and planned your content you need to
actually create your website – either yourself or using a developer.
This section will guide your next steps.

36. Make a sketch

38. Site Technology
• Static
• Data Driven, content management systems
• Flash

39. Static
• Pages manually updated
• Specialist software vs text editor
• Suited to brochure style

40. Dynamic
• Database working with HTML pages
• Easy to update
• More difficult to customise pages
• Consistent design as standard
• Essential for shopping carts and large sites

41. Flash
• Rich media experience
• Can cause compatibility/accessibility issues
• Search engines find them hard to index properly
• Suited to media orientated sites – music, film, high profile
brands
• Won’t run on a Apple software so excludes iPhones, iPads
etc

42. Who will create your site?

43. Do it all yourself?
• You can produce the site you want
• Update as often as you like
• Do you have the skills?
• Do you have the time?

44. Template
• Online services
• Quick easy set up
• On-going cost
• One solution fits all
• Can be hard to differentiate
However…
• Often a good choice for online stores

45. Web Designer
• Most expensive approach
• Most professional results
• Maintenance and updates may be costly

46. Measuring Performance
• Statistics – analytics packages (eg Google Analytics)
• Code/coupons used
• Ask customers how they found you (on forms or over the phone)
• Sales/enquiries

47. METRICS

48. When you’re ready to get
started…
• Timescale
• Budgets
• Responsibilities
• Technology
• Special requirements?

49. REAL RESULTS IN THE FUTURE

50. Your website is never
completed!
• Keep content updated
• Check for broken links – other pages/sites may move or close
• Always check your position in search
• Regularly check out your competitor’s websites
• Keep an eye on current trends but don’t forget that your site
should be accessible by your customers

51. Summary
• Balance of technical and soft skills required
• Be clear about site goals
• Choose development to suit skills and budget
• Refer to accessibility legislation
• Always review your position

52. Questions?
http://www.businessgatewayfife.com/