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Webmaster Tips 'n Tools
Be sure to get some candid feedback and human review.
Sometimes we are too close to the forest to see the trees . . .
Keep in mind that the message you are trying to communicate, no matter how much effort you put into well written content and your own review process, may not be communicating the meaning you intended.
Many times we are just too immersed in our field of expertise, terminologies and developed thought processes to view our word choices and phrases from our customers and website users mind set.
Some good advice is to break it down to it's simplest form. Chunk it, that is, use less sentences than you would in an essay while keeping good form and meaning yet make each section short and concise. Bold line statement each new section paragraph with the key thought of that content so that your viewer can easily scan the page and find or choose what is of the most interest to them. Doing this will greatly help to increase your website "sticky" factor.
Include a simple easy to use anonymous feedback form . . .
It is not a bad idea at all to build into the site "feedback" forms and opportunities for viewers to communicate back their perceptions, frustrations, enjoyment and praises to you and your webmaster. Allow them to do so without having to divulge whom they are. You will find you get much more candid and stronger opinionated user experience feedback this way.
Independent blind scientific or statistical human response studies . . .
We have found that local and regional business clients seldom have the desire, funds or the resources to develop this type of out sourced review service for their site. It is just not cost effective or practical for them to do. In practice any statistical reporting and most all the human feedback will need to be filtered through your industry specific awarenesses and some webmaster and design background experience and then interpreted and applied with a good measure of common sense along with current web industry best practices insight and principles.
Yes! Definitely get human review and feedback . . .
It is a good idea to get customers, clients and persons around you to take a look at your web site and then listen to their input. However, one word of caution as I have seen this snowball into some absurd decisions that hurt the site more than helped it.
Measure all personal opinion as such and filter out any relationship bias and close emotional reaction that may be there because they know you. Some people may have the best of intentions but little understanding of the consequences of implementing their advice or opinion. In a few cases I have even seen where a key influential person may even have other ambitions, perceptions, opinions or motives involved that have little to do with developing the success of the website.
But . . . did your site users get your message right?
Most important to this whole continuous effort is to try to find out if your users really "got your message" - the one you were intending to communicate to them. It is also important to make sure they were not turned off or away by such basic things as the general content, web site color or design choices and of course any confusions or difficulty of use.
Next . . .
how to market and promote your website.
Sometimes we are too close to the forest to see the trees . . .
Keep in mind that the message you are trying to communicate, no matter how much effort you put into well written content and your own review process, may not be communicating the meaning you intended.
Many times we are just too immersed in our field of expertise, terminologies and developed thought processes to view our word choices and phrases from our customers and website users mind set.
Some good advice is to break it down to it's simplest form. Chunk it, that is, use less sentences than you would in an essay while keeping good form and meaning yet make each section short and concise. Bold line statement each new section paragraph with the key thought of that content so that your viewer can easily scan the page and find or choose what is of the most interest to them. Doing this will greatly help to increase your website "sticky" factor.
Include a simple easy to use anonymous feedback form . . .
It is not a bad idea at all to build into the site "feedback" forms and opportunities for viewers to communicate back their perceptions, frustrations, enjoyment and praises to you and your webmaster. Allow them to do so without having to divulge whom they are. You will find you get much more candid and stronger opinionated user experience feedback this way.
Independent blind scientific or statistical human response studies . . .
We have found that local and regional business clients seldom have the desire, funds or the resources to develop this type of out sourced review service for their site. It is just not cost effective or practical for them to do. In practice any statistical reporting and most all the human feedback will need to be filtered through your industry specific awarenesses and some webmaster and design background experience and then interpreted and applied with a good measure of common sense along with current web industry best practices insight and principles.
Yes! Definitely get human review and feedback . . .
It is a good idea to get customers, clients and persons around you to take a look at your web site and then listen to their input. However, one word of caution as I have seen this snowball into some absurd decisions that hurt the site more than helped it.
Measure all personal opinion as such and filter out any relationship bias and close emotional reaction that may be there because they know you. Some people may have the best of intentions but little understanding of the consequences of implementing their advice or opinion. In a few cases I have even seen where a key influential person may even have other ambitions, perceptions, opinions or motives involved that have little to do with developing the success of the website.
But . . . did your site users get your message right?
Most important to this whole continuous effort is to try to find out if your users really "got your message" - the one you were intending to communicate to them. It is also important to make sure they were not turned off or away by such basic things as the general content, web site color or design choices and of course any confusions or difficulty of use.
Next . . .
how to market and promote your website.
