The question is the answer Options

[whitemark]

One of my teacher used to tell me this - "The question is the answer because 50% of the answer is in asking the right question." This came to mind when I read the following:

Anthony identified three questions you should ask about every page of a website: 
(1) What is the action I want the visitor to take on this page?
(2) What does a visitor need in order to be persuaded to take action?
(3) What does the visitor need in order to take the action?

What other questions should one try to answer before/after designing a web page to make sure the page achieves its goal?

[bragadocchio]

Hi whitemark,

Good questions. Here are some more that I'll throw out there. I think that there are a lot more that we could ask.

[list]Who do I want to attract to my pages?

[*]How can I get them there?

[*]How do people know when they arrive that they are pages that will help them complete the task they set out to perform?

[*]Do they know where else they can go when they arrrive?

[*]Are there different paths for folks who may have different reasons for visiting the site?

[*]Are there any impediments or distractions that can keep someone from completing those tasks?

[*]Is there enough information on the pages for a person to make an informed purchasing decision?

[*]If a person leaves, and then comes back ready to purchase, how easy is it for him or her to do that?

[*]Are there any things on the pages that make them memorable, and might help people remember the site if they leave?

[*]Are there things on the page that make people feel that they can trust the site?

[*]How does the placement of information on a page affect the way people travel through the site?

[*]Is there something on a page that people need to see right away when they arrive?[list]

[projectphp]

I got another one to ad to the end of this: "(3) What does the visitor need in order to take the action?"
(4) where do they need it? (i.e., does it need to be above the fold, both top and bottom, on teh left etc). I so often hear people say "Oh but we already have a link for that" when I have just told them I couln't find it easily.

[whitemark]

Thanks Bill and projectphp. (And some people still say that designing the site is the easy part?) When I saw your list Bill, I felt a bit overwhelmed. There is something really powerful in seeing those questions in writing than just making a note to self to mentally try to remember and answer them.

[bragadocchio]

When I saw your list Bill, I felt a bit overwhelmed.

To me, the overwhelming part is when I can't think of any questions. But thinking of these was easy. They're questions I've been asking myself for a few years. I don't need to write them down anymore, because I've written them down more than a couple of times.

I guess that we should uncover who Anthony is in your initial post. I thought that I recognized the line of questioning. That was Future Now's Anthony Garcia. I say that because there are some really good ClickZ articles, blog posts, and white papers from him and the Eisenberg brothers linked to over on the Future Now Publication page.

The article it's from is: Why Quality Content is Key For Search Engines

The real trick, I think, is to build your page the best you can. Then make it a little bit better. And then a little bit better. And then a little bit better.

Ask people for feedback on the site. When folks call, and you ask them if they found you through your web site, also ask them what they thought of the site.

When you get emails from people, and they ask questions, think about whether or not those questions can be answered on the site somehow. When they use jargon and words you might not be used to, consider if those are words that other people looking for your goods or services might use.

If you get a chance, use a program like Click tracks, or some other analytic program that can take your log files, and really show you where people are going on your site, and which links they are clicking upon.

I think that knowing that there are questions that you could ask is the real beginning to being successful getting some promising answers.

[travis]

Bill,

You are on the right track. I like the progressive feedback model.

We tell our customers that we dont build the website, and they dont build the website. And then they ask " Well who the hell builds the website ? "

The we say " Your customers feedback builds the website "

The first website which goes live is only 40% of the job. A successful website allows for growth driven purely by end user need.

Knowing that the site has a path and will never be perfect is the key to success. You always need to present a vision to the client to keep things moving.

[bwelford]

Spot on, Travis. An excellent point. :claphands:

It links with the blogging theme, pushed by Robert Scoble of Microsoft, that marketing is a dialogue with your customers. That's why you might want to link a business blog with any business website. This provides an easy way for customers to post feedback and the software to create the blog is very user-friendly. Also this creates the potential for lots of cross-linking so is powerful for the SEO efforts on your website.

There then is the huge 'hot-potato' of whether to allow customers and others to post comments. However if you set yourself the highest standards in delivering good customer service, then the good will completely eclipses any difficult comments.

[AbleReach]

The we say \" Your customers feedback builds the website \"

The first website which goes live is only 40% of the job. A successful website allows for growth driven purely by end user need.

EXCELLENT, Travis.


Elizabeth

[whitemark]

The idea of the progressive feedback model suggested by Bill and Travis is indeed truly appealing. But I am afraid it might be a headache with an impatient or non-net savvy client.

[cre8pc]

Here's an approach that works really well.

1. Write down the MAIN purpose of the site.

ex. - to promote blah
ex. - to provide information on blah
ex - to sell blah


Now, from here on in, make sure every single thing you put on the site is traceable back to the MAIN goal. If something can't directly influence or be tied to the MAIN goal, it doesn't belong on the site.

Ex. - Therefore, any ad that takes your visitor somewhere else, isn't supporting your goal of promoting your service. This includes links pages and web rings.

Ex. - If the site provides information on Travel, and a page is put up about buying organic veggies, it is not traceable to the main goal.

Ex - Any page that isn't traceable to a requirement is cut.

It does get interesting.

There a business and functional requirements you can set, and all design elements must be traceable to them.

2. Determine the demographic requirements, such as gender, age, income level, international usage, special needs....

Ex. - If all the women in the bathing suit images are size 3, and your target market requirement is all women, then it's not traceable and fails to meet the requirement.

Ex. - If your form only has a USA zip code field, it's not traceable to meeting the requirement for International usage


If a business requirement is stated to be "Make site accessible", than all the code and design elements have to meet that goal. If there is not direct, traceable route or tie to that goal, than that piece doesn't fit.

Another way of looking at it is if developing an application that needs a plug-in to work. To be traceable to the goal of being accessible, a workaround must be applied, or the plug-in is considered a site defect and given a "fail" grade.

You can be simple or elaborate in working out these requirements. I've done them in such detail as to have parent requirements and child requirements, that fall under the parent.

So it would be:

3. All pages should be optimized for search engines (Parent)

3a. Each page will have a title tag (child)
3b. Each page will have a page title (child)

The "child" requirements are traceable to the Parent, which in turn is likely traceable to a top level goal that says "Site must be found in search engines."

The reward for doing this is that there is a plan and a way of providing built-in check points so you don't go off on any tangents that don't help the bottom line. If there is a web team, everyone knows what's expected and when the site is rolled out, test cases can be applied to make sure all the requirements were met and passed.

PS - For a client, a written document with all the requirements and goals is delivered to them and they sign it. This way, you know what to do, they know what you'll do. It also helps a client understand the makings of a web site. So many of them think you're going to just slap up something and they'll make money. A document like this shows it's more involved, if they want it done properly.

[projectphp]

[quotre]So many of them think you're going to just slap up something and they'll make money.[/quote]
So true!!! I have had virtually computer illiterate clients who thought the web was "easy". Throw up a page, make money. It has ben compounded by their industry knowledge, and the fact others are making a fortune, combined with their almost total refusal to learn about computers at all.

It makes ten second jobs take all day!!

I like the way you set that out Kim. So many arguments about sites are pointless, and the way you set that out makes for clear decision making that everyone can understand.

[AbleReach]

Throw up a page, make money.

What gets to me is the passive depression that hits when they realize the starter slap-dash site is not working.

No, it's not fate, or the web, or them -- it's just the page.

Elizabeth