QUESTION:

What makes a good website?

There are multiple aspects to what makes a website successful.

Aesthetics.

“Looks” aren't the only thing, but they do matter.

The reason: whether consciously or not, most web users form opinions about a company's credibility based on the aesthetics of its website. A study conducted in 2002 by the Stanford Persuasive Technology Lab found that “nearly half of all consumers… assessed the credibility of sites based in part on the appeal of the overall visual design of a site, including layout, typography, font size and color schemes.”

Content.

Once you've made a good first impression with your site visitor, you need to quickly convince her that this is the place she can find exactly what she's looking for, and keep her attention past the first few clicks. This means: 1) understanding exactly what it is she's after, and 2) providing that. Whether your visitor wants information on a technical question, your location and hours, or to buy a certain product, you want your site to provide precisely what the user was hoping to find.

Once you've convinced a visitor that your site is trustworthy and will satisfy his needs, you need to continue to help him along in the path toward achieving his goal in a way that's so easy, he doesn't even have to think about it.

Usability.

Ever bought a really cool-looking gadget that didn't work worth a darn? Then you can appreciate the idea that there's more to creating a well-designed website than making sure it looks good.

Author Steve Krug succinctly conveys the average user's mentality in the title of his book on usability: Don't Make Me Think. Your user wants to find what he's looking for with the fewest clicks possible. Your site should make that easy for them.

Design, writing and how the site is organized are all tightly interwoven when it comes to creating a site that makes every click a “no-brainer” for your user.

Functionality.

Will the pages load quickly, even for dial-up visitors? Is the site also usable for visitors using older operating systems or minority browsers?

A savvy web developer will stay up-to-date on the latest user statistics, and test their sites across the most common browsers and platforms. Some ways of coding sites are better than others at addressing these issues.

We are passionate about -- sticklers, really -- on all four. Want proof? Check out some of our work.

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