What’s the point of a website?

This week I received an email  from a client asking us to redirect their web address so that instead of going to Website A it went to their new site, Website B.

Nothing wrong with this. It is the sort of request we get regularly and it takes less than a minute to make the change. So what’s the problem?

The problem is that the new website (Website B) wasn’t finished!

What does an unfinished website say to visitors?

These days, whenever we want to find out about a business (or pretty much anything for that matter) we search on the internet.  Certainly the internet can be fantastically entertaining (or frustratingly distracting, depending on your point of view) but when we are looking for information, it is the information that matters.

A site can look amazing with the latest web-design bells and whistles, but if it doesn’t deliver the information a visitor is looking for, or worse, gives information that suggests a site owner doesn’t care about what a visitor sees, is that going to give the visitor confidence to do business with that website? I think not!

Looks aren’t everything

A new layout might add funky new functionality but if this isn’t backed up by strong, complete and up to date content, site visitors are going to be given the impression of a company that doesn’t care or gets bored half way through a job

The danger is that many new web sites are commissioned, not because the site doesn’t give the right information about a business, but because the site owner is bored with it and has been sold the idea that a fancy new layout is just what is needed.

Sure, a modern, responsive website design can add real value to a business as long as the content is there too.

The danger is that a good, effective website with strong content is replaced by a fancy new design where the content has just been forgotten.

A year ago I wrote an article: Are you proud of your website? and over the past year I have come to appreciate that there are 3 distinct phases of website development – though I’m not sure they are often put together in the best way.

3 Phases of website development

1. Design

Creating the overall look and style. Building the WOW factor. This is the bit everyone gets excited about and what many web design companies like doing (the clue is in the name!)

2. Create

Turning the design into a functioning website is often seen as part of the web design job. Actually coding a website is a completely different task requiring different skills.

3. Update

Updating and developing the content so it stays current and continues to reflect a business, then using this steadily evolving content as a platform for ongoing communication with customers and contacts, reinforcing the real values and benefits that the company delivers – yes, that’s marketing!

The traditional approach is that 1 and 2 are packaged together and that launching a website is seen as the culmination of the project – pretty much like the ‘old’ days of designing a brochure. With this model, 3 is merely an afterthought.

An incomplete approach?

Because the creating (coding) process is primarily about programming the designed layout, there is a danger that in linking the coding to the design, once the website layout has been developed, the job of populating the site with good content becomes a necessary evil to get the job signed off.

As a consequence, the methods used to add content to a site can focus on getting the job done as quickly as possible rather than making it easy to update and develop the site content going forward

The site may look great on day 1 but because it is complicated/expensive to add or develop site content, it can quickly become outdated.

Little thought has been given to the ongoing use of the site – which can mean that as a site gets more out of date, the owner gets more and more disenchanted with it, and so the cycle starts again

A better fit?

Would it be better to treat the design as a separate task and then link creating and using the site as 2 elements of a project to deliver an effective marketing tool that is easy to use and, most important, easy to keep updated, with most day to day updates being handled in-house.

A well coded site can (and should) deliver this sort of functionality. It isn’t enough (IMHO) that a website delivers a quality visitor experience with strong, relevant content. It must also provide the functionality to allow regular updates and the addition of new content quickly and easily. It is only if it does this that the site will be kept up to date and in line with a business as it develops.

So what is the point of a website?

A website is your shop window. It is where potential customers go and explore to make decisions about whether or not they want to do business with you. The look and design should reflect your ethos and brand but it is the content that delivers the real message.

If your website isn’t up to date, life is more difficult for your business and if the reason is because no-one really gave any thought to how your site should stay current and how making updates can be easy for your and your staff then maybe you are working with one hand tied behind your back?

When did you last update your website content?