Will Marlow - Filed under 'Don't Make Me Think'

Is your website simple, or rewarding?

A lot of people who design websites or manage social media profiles are focused (smartly) on making things simple. This is generally a good thing, because visitors to your website need to be able to find what they're looking for, and they need to be able to accomplish whatever they came to do. But simplicity isn't the only thing you should go for. You should also try to make visitors feel "rewarded" for digging deep and spending time on your site. Seth Godin regularly breaks the number one rule of web development (Don't make anyone think!) by making people think, but he then rewards his visitors for thinking by giving them useful and interesting information. Two of my favorite ways that he does this are by using a picture of his head to reveal the crucial "persistent navigation" of his blog, and placing distinct links in words that run next to one another, with each link directing to its own relevant landing page.

As most of you know, I also like posting photographs that don't necessarily correspond to the topic of a blog post, but which give subscribers a bit of insight into my life, like the photo here from my wedding reception on Saturday.

Simplicity is important, but it's not the only thing you need to do to build a good online presence.

Will Marlow co-founded AlumniFidelity to help his clients reposition their fundraising to benefit from Web2.0 technology and marketing techniques. He’s working with clients such as UVA, the College of William & Mary, the University of Oklahoma, Bowling Green State University, Randolph Macon College, and he loves nothing better than a thorny marketing challenge. Email him at will@alumnifidelity.com.

Filed under // Don't Make Me Think Web development

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How People (Really) Use Websites

One book I highly recommend for learning about how to design a usable website is Don't Make Me Think by Steve Krug. This book should be your starting point if your job depends on you understanding the fundamentals of maintaining or designing a functional website. It takes about two to three hours to read, and each page has useful insights.

One observation that he makes early on is that when people are hurried (as are most visitors to your website) they don't look at multiple choices and then pick the most optimal choice. They scan for the first solution that appears to be acceptable. Once they find an acceptable solution, they test it out. If it works, they're happy. If it doesn't, they're not. This means that most people "muddle" their way through a website by scanning pages.

This is why most well-designed websites organize their information in clear, segmented chunks that are easily scannable. When you're designing a website, you should always strive to optimize it for the way people will actually use it, not the way you hope they will use it. And if your job in any way depends on designing or improving a website, reading Steve Krug's book will be time well spent.

Filed under // "Usability Testing" Don't Make Me Think Steve Krug Website optimization website design websites