I’ve spent some time pondering the qualities of a good Web site. Here is a list of what I think a good site requires.
- A solid technical base
- People to give it life
- Killer content
- Useful tools
- A strong profit model
- A smart email strategy
A Solid Technical Base
It is incredibly vital that your Web site is user-friendly, functional, search-engine-friendly, and easy to maintain. If search engines can’t find it, people won’t visit. If user’s can’t easily use it, they won’t stay. If, however, search engines can find and easily understand your site, and people can easily use it, you’ll be off to a great start.
It’s kind of like running a marathon. You can’t just sign up and show up and expect to finish in good time, unless you’ve trained and prepared. In a Web site, if you have a solid technical base, you’ll be able to keep it going strong for years to come.
People to give it life
Everyone can tell when a Web site has grown stale. It makes me kind of sad to run across a site like that… one that looks like a run-down house would appear after 10 years of neglect. It’s like traveling through the ghost towns of the Internet.
Great Web sites are doorways to people, cultures, and communities. Imagine you are going on vacation. If you are like me, you’ll spend hours online, trying to find the best restaurants and hangouts at your destination. You can tell if the web sites are alive, inviting, and exciting (without being noisy or overpowering). It makes for a better user experience.
Killer Content
Here is how I categorize why people go online: to do something or to learn something. A lot of times, people have to learn about what they want to do in order to do that something. So put some good content up on your site!
Don’t forget to stick to the content golden rule:
Only write it if it’s worth reading.
Here are the most important web content guidelines:
- Keep the paragraphs small.
- Use lots of bold headlines.
- Stick to an 8th grade reading level.
- Proofread, for Heaven’s sake!
Useful tools
Give your audience something useful to do. It will be worth the development cost.
Only build it if it’s worth using.
For example, if you’re selling something, let them:
- buy it online
- preview the product (especially if it’s a custom product)
- leave seller feedback
- write product reviews
I’ll give one more example. If you’re a restaurant, let them:
- preview the menu
- make a reservation
- print out a map
- leave a review (you can still choose which ones to make public)
- join your Diner’s Club
A strong profit model
One upon a time, people considered Web sites as just marketing tools. It does not have to be this way! There are lots of ways to get your site to make a profit. Here are just a few:
- get corporate sponsors
- display ads like Google AdSense ads (these days they do text, image, and also video ads)
- sell something
- offer a tool with a monthly subscription cost
I don’t recommend putting your entire profit “eggs” into “one basket.” If your income is solely on advertising, and the advertising market dips, your profit will dip as well. If you rely solely on one big corporate sponsor, and the relationship sours, you’ll be in trouble. So hedge your bets!
It really is possible to find a tasteful profit model. Don’t be lazy here: if you think it through, you’ll be able to come up with a solution that is good for you and good for your users.
A smart email strategy
A good web site and a good email strategy go hand in hand. If a user comes to your site and then leaves, the easiest way to get them back is to send them a useful email that entices them to return.
Gardening sites are great about sending emails full of pretty flowers, but they really ought to go a step further and offer snippets of useful gardening tips, with links back to the gardening site’s blog. It’s an easy and smart way to set themselves up as experts in the field while keeping their newsletter out of the recipient’s spam folder.
If your restaurant has a Diner’s club sign-up on your web site, you can easily capture their birthday and anniversary date. Send them (or their spouse?!) a coupon. Yes, I know, they all do that. I got half a dozen for my last birthday. But if you don’t, and everyone else does, where will they go?
Decide to have a good Web site
Go ahead. Think deeply. Put in the effort. Update your site. Your visitors will thank you.