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10 Best-Practice Essentials for Your Next Web Redesign
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A Look and Feel That Reflects Your Brand
Your web site is increasingly the first impression
your company makes. Do customers know they've
found the right URL? Does your home page build
emotional impact while reinforcing your brand
image? What kind of first impression are you
making? This is a job interview; don't underdress. [Read more about Site Look and Feel]
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Clear Navigation
Does your site navigation skillfully show customers
where they are, where they can go, and how to get
there? The best navigation simply works, without
requiring extra thought (though achieving this does
take extra planning, user-testing and careful design). [Read more about Web Navigation]
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Visual Hierarchy
Does everything on your site, from navigation to
page layout, quickly show customers what's most
important? Balance key elements including color,
contrast, typography, and page layout to drive
visitors directly to what they're looking for. [Read more about Visual Hierarchy]
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Concise, Easy-to-Scan Text
Web users expect their information broken down
into bite-sized chunks. Is your copy brief, organized,
audience-appropriate, and consistent in tone? Don't
tire reader's eyes with small type, brash color combinations
and wide columns. Summarize paragraph
content in the first sentence, and use subheads and
bullet points where possible. [Read more about Writing for the Web]
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Differentiation and Sales Messaging
Your site is a 24-hour stand-in for your sales team,
customer service staff, and PR team, so your site's
messaging must reinforce your brand position and
points of differentiation. Sell your uniqueness!
Engage your audience by focusing the experience
around their needs, not yours. [Read more about Differentiation and Messaging]
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Search Engine Visibility
Search engines only index what they can see: plain text
and specially-coded META tags. If your site's content
is buried within an attractive graphic or Flash movie,
it's probably invisible to search engines. Determine
the search words and key phrases you need to target
and make sure your site is optimized for them. [Read more about Search Engine Visibility]
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Modular, Template-Driven Design
Even if your site doesn't need a back-end database
or sophisticated development environment, your site
can and should share layout, style and navigation
elements from page to page. Modular, templatedriven
design ensures visual consistency while
reducing development and maintenance costs.
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Standards and ADA §508 Accessibility
Are you at risk of losing your government accounts
to competitors with ADA-compliant sites, or alienating
your disabled customers? Using standardscompliant
XHTML and CSS also makes it easier to
update the look of your site, port content to next-generation
mobile devices, and more!
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Communication and Data Collection
Why waste a perfect opportunity to communicate
with customers and collect data? Add forms to your
contact pages. Let customers order online. Track
web site visits and search engine traffic. Ask visitors
to sign up for your newsletter. Make your web site
an interactive experience!
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Fresh, Relevant Content
Is the copyright date on your site two years old? If
your last newsletter was posted last summer and
your latest press release announces a new executive
who's since retired, it's time to freshen things up.
Search engines and customers alike reward relevant,
freshly-updated sites with repeat visits.
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