Communication
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This page is all about the question whether your web site communicates your message
effectively. We can write whole books about this subject, but checklists are more
economic. So here's a checklist for effective web communication:
Concept
 Which expectations does the site raise for the viewers?
Which existing sites do you know with which yours could be compared?
How promising does the first page look?
What does it promise the rest of the site to be like?
How does the rest of the site fulfill this promise?
How does one notice that specifically: by which elements on the page(s) [layout, buttons, texts]?
What image does one get of the organisation behind the site?
Content
What information is the site supposed to convey? (News, product information, etc.)
How complete, accurate, clear, accessible and attractive is the information on the site?
What communication options does the site offer? (Discussion forum, reaction buttons, evaluations, polls.)
What products can be purchased from the site?
Is it possible to download products from the site?
How user friendly is the purchasing procedure?
How unique is the content?
How correct is the content? (Are all the facts and figures accurate and up to date?)
How accessible is the content?
What percentage of the page(s) was reserved for content, as opposed to other elements?
Design
What impression does the site design make?
Does the site have a style of its own?
What is the balance between design and content like?
Is the visitor's eye directed at the most important page elements?
Is there plenty of contrast between background and text colour, making it easy to read?
Is the design not too "loud" in order not to deter visitors?
Mechanics
How functional is the site?
If tools like roll-down menus, mouse-overs, etc. were used, do they support the use of the site or are they just there for decoration purposes?
Do all the buttons and hyperlinks work as they should?
Does one get any error messages?
How fast do the pages load?
How fast does the site react? (About this subject, check out our web space page.)
Navigation
Can the contents of the options on the menu be predicted without clicking them?
How easy is it to browse the site?
How easy is it to use the buttons, hyperlinks and menu?
Does the site conform to existing web conventions?
Do the actions on the site, activated by mouse clicks etc., make sense?
Could a visitor ever be bewildered by something that unexpectedly appears?
Is it always clear where the visitor ends up while browsing?
How does he see that? (Use of colours, changes in the menu, page title?)
Is there a local search engine on the site?
Can you find anything, using simple key words?
Is there a site map? (Which might only be necessary in case of a very complicated site structure.)
Text
Does the first page tell the visitor anything about the person or organisation behind the site, and what visitors can expect to find there?
Is it possible to read the text in a cursory manner?
Is the text on the first page and the feature pages brief enough?
Are the titles of the buttons and hyperlinks clear enough?
Are the titles and subheadings informative enough?
Do they "cover the cargo", or are they funny?
Are the titles suitable for use by search engines?
Are most texts brief enough?
Do the texts show a certain style or "personality"?
Is the text attractive enough to read?
Have the grammar and spelling been checked carefully? (About this subject, check out our web writing page.)
For more about writing web texts,
see Web writing.
For more about better web hosts,
see Web space.
Keep your e-mail safe and spam-free:
see
Spam Filters & Email Security by ePrism.
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GET IT RIGHT:
If it gets published, it should be good. And look good. And be to the point. And have impact.
And be correct. Make better web sites with these suggestions.
Relevant reads:
The Non-Designer's Web Book
Web Design in a Nutshell: A Desktop Quick Reference
Designing Web Usability: The Practice of Simplicity
Hot Text: Web Writing That Works
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