This new medium for communication affords some marvelous opportunities for conveying your business message. It also offers the opportunity to waste a lot of money if it's not done well.
In order to help you get more bang for your web dollar I'm going to share some of the do's and don'ts of business on the web. Please note that this is not the gee-whiz stuff from the glossy magazines but the nuts and bolts of promoting business on the web.
DON'T make viewers wait. After only twenty seconds a casual visitor becomes impatient. Pages, particularly the first page must load quickly.
DO know the things that viewers most love to hate.
- BLINK Fortunately, blinking text has been almost eliminated except for the odd neophyte designer. Unfortunately, it is being replaced by animated graphics and scrolling banners. The most annoying thing about blink was that you couldn't stop it. Viewers who can see graphics and banners have and use the option of turning them off so don't put anything important there (if it's not important???)
- SCROLLING Viewers will NOT scroll horizontally and will scroll only three screen lengths vertically. The vertical limit applies primarily to the main pages as viewers will read long pages which are of interest.
DON'T let the viewer get lost on your site. As your site grows larger it is vital that the viewer easily be able to find the information that she requires and that important information is not missed.
DO use thumbnails for large graphics and start buttons for sound files. These files take way oo long to download and unless you're selling music then the chances of the viewer being repelled by your choices are greater than not.
DON'T overload your pages. A browser on a 14" screen at 480 x 600 displays the equivalent of a 3" x 5" card.
DO understand that by putting up a web site you have made a commitment to communicate on the net. A 24 hour response time is slow by internet standards.
The purpose of your web site is to enhance or generate business. Would you stand at the door and tell a potential customer to visit a store down the street first and then come back to see you? Then don't do it on your web site with demands for better browsers, the latest plug-in or a better monitor. The only thing that can stand between the customer and your till is an opportunity to purchase your product.