Author Archive

Sitemaps are like Marmite (Ed: yeast extract spread that divides opinion, very popular in the UK). You either love them or hate them. OK maybe you don’t ‘love’ them but they do seem to create an obvious divide between those that use them and those that don’t. I rarely use them but they are part of my day job and that got me wondering, what are the good, the bad and the ugly examples of sitemaps.

As well as looking at sitemaps in relation to those three criteria I will also discuss Google sitemaps, a whole new world for sitemaps.

The Good

Let’s start off on a high note. Sitemaps are a safety net. They can be a last resort for users before they abandon ship and leave your site having not found what they needed and vowing never to come back.

Another advantage in line with the above is that they are often the only full overview of your site (depending on the size and scope of it). All of the pages may be listed in the main navigation but if this is structured using drop-down menus for sub pages then your sitemap remains the only full overview and therefore serves an important purpose. (more…)

We live in a world saturated with stories, then one day along came the web and suddenly anyone could design, write for and contribute to a mass of websites, and storytelling got lost in the mix.

This needn’t be the case though. Storytelling is the most powerful way of organising and communicating information so it lends itself nicely to the web, we just have to think of more appropriate ways of telling stories online and this can be achieved in several ways.

Know your story and your audience

Don’t assume you know your audience. Invest the time in finding out who is visiting your site and what their goals will be. Once you know this you can think about the story you want your site to tell.

For a small design studio for example, it might be the story of how the company came to exist and the work they do and the people they do it for. Every business has a story to tell.

When you are clear about the audience and story you will be able to tell it in the most appropriate way.

Vital to any project is thinking about the story at the beginning, it is too late when you reach the end or when design visuals are signed off, the story should be part of the process from conception to implementation. (more…)

Writing for the web is a challenge. There are usually word length restrictions, the fact that users scan rather than read every word, and sometimes style guides to adhere to.

There are enough writing tips online to keep you reading for longer than you probably desire. Here are 1o tips that have been the most useful to me:

1. Know your audience

   This sounds obvious but is often taken for granted. The only way you can write relevant copy that is targeted at the right audience in the right tone of voice, is to understand who that audience is. Depending on where your audience are located, you may have to include local expressions or if writing for a wide audience be specific with things such as dollars. If it is US dollars then say so. If it is Cardiff in Wales then say so as there is also a Cardiff in New Zealand and other countries.

2. Decide why you are writing?

   Linked to the previous tip, as well as knowing who you are writing for you need to know why you are writing for them. Is it to get them to register, persuade them to buy something, deliver information to them or get them to subscribe to something?

   Your answer to this question should determine what you write.

3. Headlines

   A well thought of and clear headline can generate four times the interest of a poor one. Headlines shouldn’t be longer than 7 words and should be written in the present tense.

4. Upper case

   Avoid the use of ALL UPPER CASE in your copy as it takes 57% longer to read. Also avoid starting every word with a capital letter in your headings.

5. Choose the right words

   Certain words can hold the reader’s attention whilst others can turn them off. Words that people like include thoughtful, imagination, progress, and ambition. Less popular words include dispute, failure, weak, and extravagant.

   Use contractions. That is, use ‘you’re’ instead of ‘you are’ and ‘doesn’t’ instead of ‘does not’. Whilst some are of the opinion that the contractions are bad English, they do make the copy less formal and more conversational which is often the tone of voice and style that is required on the web. (more…)