Resources

Connections Vol. 2 Issue 5 May 2007

Simple Things You Can Do to Make Your Web Site Even Better

By: James R. Dragoo Jr.

1-877-525-2463

In This Issue

We will be discussing some simple things that you can do to make your web site even better than it already is. Many of these things you can check on your own and they take only a few minutes or less. It is worth a little bit of time to ensure that a vital link to your customers remains that way.

Favicon

Does your web site have a favicon? You may be asking, "What is a favicon?" A favicon, which is short for "favorite icon," is a tiny image, typically a logo, which appears in two places. The first place is next to your web site address when you are browsing the internet. The second place is when someone adds a web site to their favorites or bookmarks list in their web browser. Favicons add a nice personal touch to your web site that enables you to uniquely stand out to your visitors. Many web sites do not utilize favicons, so right now is your chance to stand out. When you are listed in a list of bookmarked web sites and your web site has a favicon, your favicon will stand out. And from a marketing prospective, that's good branding.

Ask Someone to Link to You

Contact a partner, supplier, or someone else that compliments your web site or business and ask them to place a link to your web site on their web site. This is similar to building a business relationship. Over time these other web sites that link to you will make your web site look better, not just to people but to search engines like Google, Yahoo, MSN, etc.

Check for Glitches...They Could Indicate Errors in the Web Site's Code

Your web site is made up of lines of code that tell your browser how to display the web site. Sometimes there can be something wrong with the code of your web site. These errors may not be noticeable to the human eye but can have a detrimental effect on the web site's functionality and searchability. There are, however, a few common indicators that your web site's code may contain errors. The most common indicators are page elements that do not display correctly. For example, images may not show up or links and buttons may take you to the wrong page or no page at all. These types of problems can give your web site visitors a bad experience that they could associate with you.

We do not recommend that you try to manipulate the code of your web site yourself as some alterations can break your web site entirely. Even if your web site appears to be fine, we offer an evaluation of your web site, which checks all pages, to find any errors. We can then isolate and correct any errors so that your web site is error free and compliant with the web site industry's coding standards.

View Your Web Site in Other Browsers

There are different types of browsers used to view web sites on the internet. Currently the most common web browser is Microsoft Internet Explorer since it comes standard with all Microsoft Windows operating systems. The second most used browser, which has been steadily gaining popularity, is Mozilla Firefox. The Firefox browser can be downloaded for free at http://www.mozilla.com. View your web site in both Microsoft Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox. Do you notice any differences in the display of your web site? If so, this could be an indication that you have errors in the code of your web site. You may be excluding the visitors that use the browser that reveals these errors, and no business wants to exclude a portion of their particular audience or market.

Check Links and Text for Sufficient Contrast

Are the text and links on your web site easy to read? You want your text and links to contrast with their backgrounds so that they are easily readable. Even if you do not have trouble reading the text, someone who is color blind may have trouble reading it. Is there enough contrast to make the text stand out?

Also, try checking to see if the main navigation of your web site appears the same on every page and in the exact same location. If your web site navigation is not visitors may become annoyed. They may then become distracted and leave your web site and go to a competitor's web site.

Check for Relevant Page Titles

When you view pages on your web site look at the top left of your browser screen and you will see the title for that page. Does this title properly describe the information found on this page? Page titles should always clearly define what information is found on that page. If the page does not have a title it may by default read something like "Untitled" or "Untitled Document." This does not help with your search engine rankings and to your visitors who may question the quality of your web site.

Add or Update the Content On Your Web Site

Updating and adding to your web site can be the single most important thing you can do to improve it. A visitor is more likely to return to your web site periodically if your content is always up to date. The next time they return to your web site they will have new information that was not there the first time. If your content does not update, search engines will begin to view your web site as a dormant, out-of-date web site. (See our March 2007 newsletter for more information about updating the content of your web site.)

Definitions

Favicon (fav-eye-con): Stands for "Favorite Icon." The favicon is an image that appears in most browsers at the beginning of the address bar and also in the Favorites or Bookmarks folder next to the web site address. It is a unique symbol, normally a logo or any other image that can be associated with a web site.

Search Engine Ranking

How high or low one appears in a search engine result list when relevant keywords are typed into the search box.

What You Should Know About Search Engines

Many people that use a search engine to find a business such as yours are not going to type the name of your company into the search field because they probably have never heard of your company. They are going to search for what product or service they are looking for.

For example, if you are a Pet Groomer, customers who want your services are not going to search for the name of your company. They are instead going to search for "Dog Groomer" or "Pet Cleaning Products." Where do you rank?

On average, it is typical for a web site to show that 80% of visitors find the web site through a search engine. This shows that only 20% or less of your web site visitors go to your web site directly by typing your web site address.