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Home » Never Redesign Your Website
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Never Redesign Your Website** SiteBuilderNews - 2/13/2002 Issue ** Helping You Build A Better Website ================================================================= In This Issue of SiteBuilderNews: => 1. Editor's Note => 2. Article: Never Redesign Your Web Site => 3. Site Builder Tip => 4. Sites for Site Builders => 5. Site Builder News ================================================================= SPONSOR AD: ================================================================= Your-Site: Superior, Affordable Web Hosting! * 50 MB Disk Space * 25 POP3 E-Mail Accounts * 6 Gigs Transfer * Your own cgi-bin * 24/7 FTP Access * 99.9% Guaranteed Uptime * Plus Much More! ONLY $5 PER MONTH! http://www.sitebuildernews.com/yoursite.php ================================================================= 1. Editor's Note ================================================================= Hello SiteBuilders, Google just entered the Cost-Per-Click advertising game with its own system called "AdWords Select". Those of you who have advertised with Google's AdWords program know that Google displays several sponsored sites in a bar along the right of their normal search results. The original AdWords program was CPM-based, where you payed based on the number of searches the term received a month. The new AdWords Select program allows you to pay per clickthrough instead. Google's did, however, keep their original system of ranking sponsored listings. You can't simply bid more than other advertisers to get a top listing -- your ad needs to get more click throughs as well. This keeps the most relevant results to searchers up top, as well as allowing Google to earn more by placing the ads with the most clicks up top, allowing them to get even more. You can check out Google's new program at https://adwords.google.com/select/main?cmd=Login -- Dan Grossman edi-@sitebuildernews.com ================================================================= ================================================================= Upgrade to receive HTML version of SiteBuilderNews! Subscribe for free at mailto:sitebuildernews-@topica.com ================================================================= 2. Feature Article: ================================================================= Never Redesign Your Web Site by Chris Kalaboukis "We want to completely redesign our web site". If I had a penny for every time I heard that, well you know the rest. In the web design business, that's all I ever hear, with the additional comments of "the sites just not working", "customers are having trouble finding things". Many of these customers had web sites that they redesigned on a regular basis, some customers completely redesigning their sites from the ground up every few months (or even more often),especially back in the heyday of the internet. I'm here to tell you how often you should completely redesign your web site: Never. Not even once. Why you ask? To illustrate, let me tell you a story about another famous interface re-design you may have heard of. Back in 1995, a major software company was coming out with a new version of their operating systems software. It was a complete redesign of their software from the ground up, including interface. They spent countless millions promoting it and marketing it, including hiring the Rolling Stones to sing the theme song (Guessed the company yet?). While initial sales were good, the main market they were trying to hit, the corporate user, was slow to catch on. Why? It wasn't that the software was pricey, its wasn't that the software was hard to install, in fact the company had provided a number of tools to easily upgrade current users en masse to the new software version. What's was the problem? The technology was sound; the software was less buggy than the previous version, the tools for corporate deployment were there. The problem wasn't the software. The problem was the wetware, or the humans who would be using the software. The training costs to re-train users on the new software far outstripped the costs of the software implementation, and therefore the total cost of the "redesign" was far more that originally expected. It took many years before the operating system was fully accepted into the marketplace. Since then, that company has learned their lesson. They no longer completely redesign their user interface: it's not revolution, its evolution. If you look at the interface they have just recently released, it's the same basic interface, but its looks better. The major changes are under the hood, not in the user experience. Which comes back to the web: what is a web site but a user interface? Learn from the billions the aforementioned company spent in creating and promoting their software and don't redesign your site. But you say the interface isn't working now: we have to redesign. Take a good long look at your site: hire someone else to analyze it, ask for feedback from your customers. Is it scalable and expandable as is? Does it really need a whole new look and feel? No one likes changes, your customers least of all. After all, they have been using your site for a while now and unless it's completely unworkable, derive some value from it. So, unless the design is extremely bad, don't start from scratch. But if you must start from scratch, remember this: Users don't want something new. They don't want bells and whistles. They don't want flash. They don't want animated graphics that serve no purpose and distract them from the task at hand. Users want to hit a site, perform a task, and get out. Make it swift and easy. Most of all: don't surprise the user. What you need is an initial new design: not a RE-design. Remember, Never Redesign your site. Put some thought into building an initial design model that works, that's scalable and expandable. Design an interface that you can add stuff to, since there is always more that you need to add. Design an interface which doesn't force you into physical limitations (like using a horizontal navigation bar then running out of space when you want to add that last button). Start with a good design: then simply evolve it. OK, you're allowed one redesign, but that's it. But before you write one HTML command or redesign that graphic, build out a map or task flow of what the users wants to do, or what you want the user to do when they visit your site. Look at the task flow and revise it so that the user can take the steps with the minimum amount of clicks. Make it easy and intuitive for the user. Edit your task flow ruthlessly, removing any extraneous elements that distract from that flow. Run it past your customers, get feedback, revise until it's as tight as it can get, then you can go ahead and built it. It might sound like a lot of work, but you will never need to redesign your site again, and that will save you time, money and headaches as your site evolves. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Chris Kalaboukis is CTO of SwapSmarts: http://swapsmarts.com Chris has 17+ years of experience in internet, information technology and business development with web design, wireless, high-speed internet, cable television and entertainment firms. ================================================================= Reach thousands of subscribers! For ad details and prices, email: mailto:edi-@sitebuildernews.com?subject=ad_inquiry ================================================================= 3. Site Builder Tip ================================================================= This Week's Tip: Don't Sell Yourself Cheap! When most people start out on the internet, with the dollar signs in their eyes, looking forward to the money they'll make, they sell themselves cheap. Oh, it's easy to do. You figure you have more time than money and do not stop to figure that maybe you're only making $2/hour after costs. Now, think about it, couldn't you go to a fast food restaurant and make more money than that? Think of yourself as a professional - keep in mind that your time is worth something. How long does it take for you to perform the service? How long does it take to market the product? How much are you paying for computer upkeep, internet fees, domain registration, hosting, and advertising? Take these items into consideration before you set your price. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Deborah Anderson, of AndersonCreations.com, teaches web design and internet marketing in addition to publishing Webmaster Tips Weekly. Subscribe free by sending a blank email to mailto:subsc-@webmaster-tips-weekly.com http://webmaster-tips-weekly.com/webtips ================================================================= 4. Sites for Site Builders ================================================================= Web Poll Central - Free Web Polls Web Poll Central offers a free remotely hosted polls you can add to your site. You choose the question and answer choices, then just add some code to your website. Check it out at... http://www.webpollcentral.com/ ================================================================= 5. Site Builder News ================================================================= Web Hosting Company thrives After Dot-Com Apocalypse http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?p32617653 First Data Offers Website Pros and Kurant E-Business Solution http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?p32606467 BMC unveils tool to patrol webMethods platform http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?p32585889 Larry King To Host Live Webcast From GW Hospital http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?p32574235 Best Host Is One Suitable For Web Site http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?p32562205 How to Support Field Sales and Telesales with Your Web Site http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?p32559356 How to generate referral content http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?p32552995 ================================================================= ================================================================= Do you know someone who has a website or would like to create one? Forward them a copy of this eZine and urge them to subscribe! To subscribe send a blank email to: mailto:sitebuilderne-@topica.com ================================================================= ================================================================= Send suggestions and comments to: edi-@SiteBuilderNews.com Reach thousands of subscribers! For ad details and prices, visit our media kit at http://www.sitebuildernews.com/advertise.php SiteBuilderNews is © 2000-2001 Dan Grossman. All Rights Reserved. No part of this newsletter may be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission. All guest articles are copyright their respective owners and are reproduced with permission. |
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