The more things change the more they stay the same.
Jakob Nielsen’s latest Alertbox article focuses on what a business website really needs to be successful. Fix the basics first, says Nielsen. Don’t rush into the ‘next big thing’ when you have no content strategy in place.
Here are the biggest content issues that led to lost business value:
- Overly aggressive homepage promotions made users distrust the price of any product that was not on sale
- inconsistent design.Navigation options and structural appearances changed. Parts of the intranet looked outdated compared to newer sections
- Potential customers couldn’t find a service company’s outlets
- Intrusive advertising on the site that offered no value
- Users didn’t understand what the service did, how it worked, or what it could offer them. Given their vague inklings about the payoff, users were unwilling to register with the site
The three content issues you need to pay attention to in your strategy are
- Communicate clearly so that users understand you. Users allocate minimal time to initial website visits, so you must quickly convince them that the site’s worthwhile.
- Provide information users want. Users must be able to easily determine whether your services meet their needs and why they should do business with you.
- Offer simple, consistent page design, clear navigation, and an information architecture that puts things where users expect to find them.
Source: Alertbox
