• It’s slow to load
• Slow load times means more people are bouncing away from your site, going to somebody else’s.
• Pages are missing
• This looks unprofessional and untrustworthy.
• Links are broken
• This looks unprofessional and untrustworthy.
• It’s not generating leads
• Websites are not to look pretty, they’re a business investment that should be bringing you a return.
• It’s hard to read
• Clutter and confusion do not convert to customers. They frustrate and push people away.
• It only works with one web browser
• This is an outdated practice. Internet Explorer is far from the gold standard of web browsing, and there are many browsers out there. So get with the program and make it accessible to as many as possible!
• It’s a Flash website
• Graphic and Flash heavy websites are not easily found in search engines. So less people are finding you.
• Customers can’t find things
• Need I say more?
• Customers keep calling asking the same questions
• This is a surefire sign that the necessary information is not readily apparent online. Listen to your call center/customer service department and find out what needs fixing.
• Information is outdated
• Old information, dated articles that are no longer relevant are wasting space and customers’ time. So clear these out and make room for new pages. Search engines like newer stuff.
• There are many more reasons … why do you need a website redesign?
• Email info@mindspringdesign.com to get a free quote and get started on a fresh, dynamic website that makes money and attracts customers!

I’ve thrown together a comparison of free vs. custom websites. Of course most website designers will steer you towards a custom website. But this may not be feasible for everyone. And I wouldn’t recommend it if it exceeds your budget. But it definitely has its advantages as you can see below. The things that make free websites so attractive also make a business look very unprofessional and can dampen sales. Have I missed any comparison line items?

Does your business cater to young people?

Do children primarily use your website?

Have you tested your website‘s usability on your target market… children?

Children and toddlers, even, are using the internet on a regular basis. A website that targets these young people will need special design considerations, but it will also present challenges in user experience. What this means is that young kids have special needs and challenges that need to be taken into consideration when designing a website for them. These include:

Eye-hand coordination

Non-readers or new readers

Ability to click mouse buttons

Ability to use keyboard

You may want to consider:

Having audio or video instructions

Not placing important navigation below the fold

Not using complicated functionality when simplicity will do

Not recreating standard design conventions, this could be confusing

Check out an article in UX Matters that Heather Nam recently published entitled Designing User Experiences for Children. She lists a useful list of suggested design conventions when designing for children.

This Week in The Biz Bite, Entrepreneur Coach Whitney Keyes lists her Top 10 Small Business Technology Resolutions. Three of them especially caught my eye. I believe that these are major things every business should do all year long every year! Here’s an excerpt:

10. Work the Web. Ask yourself if your website (you do have a website, right?) still fits the needs of your business. Is it time to upgrade to an e-commerce solution so you can sell your products or services online?

I agree. I suggest getting a professional competitive analysis to see how your website stacks up to your competition. You will then get personalized recommendations for the most cost effective ways to expand your online presence and increase your website ROI.

7. The Search is On. Do you know what SEO is? Search engine optimization improves your rank on sites like Google and Yahoo! A few keywords can catapult your ranking in only a few months.

I continue to see small business websites that have not yet tapped into this opportunity. Step out into the search engine spotlight by investing in SEO. Consult with an SEO specialist to determine how you define your organization/products and how to capitalize on your strengths while  attracting new customers.

6. Be Smart and Social. Do some social media due diligence to find out if your industry cares about tweets, friends or followers before you invest valuable resources in social media.

Have your web designer do research on the viability and potential for social media. Do a test run to see the results. Be bold, think outside the box, and you might just be surprised!

In addition to Ms. Keyes recommendations, I also strongly suggest that small businesses put in place a regular web analytics schedule. This will enable you to see how well or poorly your website is performing monthly or quarterly. Then your web designer will suggest simple, practical improvements to increase the effectiveness of your site.

Mindspring Design adopts the AIGA (American Institute of Graphic Designers | the professional association for design) Design Framework. This process is adopted in whole or in part for all our current and future web design projects.

Why incorporate a process? This framework helps our clients understand what is involved in the design process. Creating branding and websites is not just an ethereal, serendipitous journey. Design decisions are based on research, communication, problem-solving and innovation. Our clients are well-informed collaborators throughout the process, and their business goals are a top priority. View successful case studies here.

Contact Mindspring Design at 856-393-0385 to see how incorporating this framework into your next website project can generate value for your small business.

Mindspring Design also has developed its own exclusive, comprehensive 62-point system for creating and assessing your printed graphics materials.

Okay, a bit of shameless self-promotion never hurt anyone. Hey, it’s my blog! So the following is going to be put into my new ads. It’s adapted from The Web Design Business Kit (www.sitepoint.com). Everytime you try a new online marketing approach, document it. Document how much you spend, how long it runs, who responds and who buys. Here it goes:

Free webinar details the secret to web site success…

Often times web sites are developed by cool designers who have little or no interest or understanding in your business needs. What you need is a website that really works.

Mindspring Design is a cutting-edge web development firm. We know how to make a web site that generates leads, positions your business, and increases customer care.

Specializing in:

• web site development
• improving under-performing web sites
• online marketing

For your FREE Webinar: 9 Steps to Building a Small Business Website, or for your free consultation, call (856) 393-0385.

Hello all! I’m very pleased to announce Mindspring Design’s first live, free webinar. Here are the details:

9 Steps to Building a Successful Small Business Website
November 25, 2009 @ 2:00 PM EST
Enter Webinar Room Here | Sign Up Below
Dial In (International): 702-473-3463
Atendee Passcode: 646377

On the agenda….

1. The webinar is scheduled to last 30-40 minutes.
2. We will cover what small business owners need to consider before they even consult with a web designer.
3. We will discuss the main steps small-business owners often overlook.
4. We will talk about what we can learn from a few case studies.
5. And you will leave with an actionable plan to get your business website started or even updated.

You can sign up below. After the webinar, I will post a recording of the webinar. And I will also be doing a review of the free, online webinar software called Dimdim that I will be using. It is supposed to be a free alternative to WebEx, so we’ll see how that goes!

Sign Up for the Webinar Here:

SPLASH!

While visiting web sites of companies in my local area today, I ran into several splash intro pages. You know, those intro pages with big Flash animations welcoming you to the web site. Completely unnecessary pre-home pages.

NOTE:

This practice of adding a splash page is outdated. It also fails to add informational or entertainment value as 100% of visitors will skip the intro.

TIPS:

1. Web site animations should serve a purpose, help users reach a goal, learn something.
2. Animations which are purely decorative are annoying and useless.
3. Animations should give users the option to stop, pause, play, skip, fast-forward, rewind.
4. Animations and/or videos should also give users some feedback — as in length of animation, download progression, etc.

EXAMPLE

After a recent downpour, my roof leaked and ruined the drywall in the ceiling. What to do? Here’s an animation that’s functional and understandable. It is easy to follow, clearly showing the steps for repairs. It includes the text in addition to audio. And, it has the options to stop, pause, play, fast forward, etc. Great job! (By the way, I’ve personally worked with Easy2 DIY programs and staff, and they are absolutely great. Maybe I’ll do a review on their software…)

There are tons of places to find free fonts. I didn’t say good fonts, I said free. But anywho, I did come across a blogger who promotes a selection of free fonts every Friday. Now some of these are very cool. You just might have a specific application where one of these would work splendidly.

So check them out. And let us know how you used them!