Click HERE! No thank you.

One of my pet peeves on websites and in e-mails is the ever-present "click here" link.

Whenever I see one, I just cringe. But it's not just my grammar and style OCD that makes this bad--links like these make it hard for search engines and users to figure out what you are trying to communicate.

Remember, web readers are scanners--they aren't looking at everything on your site and they certainly aren't reading all the copy. So if you have an important bit of info that you want to provide them through a link, you need to not only provide that link but also describe to them WHAT they will find there.

Providing descriptive links allows quick scanning users to see relevant content easily. If they have to go back and read a sentence to figure out what is behind the "click here," it's highly likely they won't click.

Plus, it's a lot more likely that a search engine will register that relevant content if it's clearly labeled. 

Meaning of Icons

I ran across an article today talking about how to use icons to enhance your web design. I agree with many of the points in the article, but I think the author failed to focus on the most important rule of icon use:

• Make sure they understand it and that it adds relevance to the content

One of my coworkers was examining a new software interface recently. Somehow we got into a discussion about the "save" button. Save on most word processing and design programs is almost always represented by an icon only--a 3.5 floppy disk icon.

The coworker remarked that the icon was out of date; that no one had used floppy drives in five years and no one would even know what they were in 10. Yet the icon remains. Why? 

It is simple association. We have come to associate that image with save--every time, all the time. I doesn't matter that the next generation will never have seen a real disk like that. The fact remains that the learn from the start that weird square thing means save.

The point of this tale is to remember to ask ourselves: are our icons that powerful? Are they adding to the value and UNDERSTANDING of our sites? Could they stand alone?

If the answers are yes, then use them. If not, rethink what you are trying to convey--there may be a better image or a better method you can use.

Bogged Down in Branding

So the Sharepoint project rages on...with very little in-house knowledge of the platform. Programmers, writers, designers, UI team--none of us quite have the background we need to really make Sharepoint sing. So we've been training and reading and working with experts to get it right.

One thing I learned early on and have now seen the true benefit of is that Branding must be an integral part of all phases of design. If your web team is like mine, you know that getting the IT "functional" thinkers to work with the UI "experience" guys can be difficult.

But with Sharepoint, as with any successful web project, all the details should be worked through with the big picture in mind.

You have a new form that needs five new fields? Why? How should they be set up? What controls need to be used to validate the data? All these types of questions should be answered both within the functional capabilities of the team and the platform (i.e. What web parts are we using?) AND within the usability vision of the UI team.

By maintaining a cohesive working environment, nothing will be left behind. Get all of the concerns out and discussed for each functional area of the site at one time with the help of the WHOLE team. Working together allows web parts to be defined, user flow to be established, functionality to be built and branding to be determined all at once so the team can truly see where the project is going and, more importantly, WHY.

Trust this, if you don't consider Branding (which is often the usability portion) through out the process, the end product will not be what the USER expected.

As the Scope Suffers

It's happened to all of us at one time or another. A great project is pitched that will completely revitalize your website, update old interfaces, enhance old functionality and create a user-centric experience. (JOY!) Then it happens -- a scope is approved that seems to look nothing like the original project concept.

It's tough to swallow for sure. One think that must be considered is what is the ultimate goal of this project and who is the project sponsor -- that is, who is the person running the show and making final decisions on scope? Is that person focused on a goal outside of the user experience? Is that what you should be focusing on too?

It's difficult in a large company to know exactly what the people on top have in mind, especially if the message gets translated and confused on the way down. But don't be afraid to ask the questions and to work to keep usability in the forefront. You may lose today, but hopefully, if you stay on message, you can make changes happen in future project phases.

The Sharepoint Saga

To Sharepoint or not to Sharepoint...

It's a million-dollar question for sure. Sharepoint has gained a lot of momentum, but will it last?

Until recently, I did not know very much about this tool, and I honestly saw it only as a file-storage system. That's because many companies only use it as such, and never truly find out how Sharepoint can be used as an external facing website and internal CMS.

Now that I am finding out about Sharepoint, I find it daunting, to say the least and not the user-friendly solution I'd hoped for.

Bandwagon
Every other company you meet has a "Sharepoint Developer" or a "Sharepoint Branding Expert." Everyone is getting a piece of this colossal Microsoft monster, and why not? Sharepoint offers what might be "easier" solutions to creating intranets and website, yet doing it right takes skill and practice most businesses don't have. But as a small shop, I wouldn't put all my eggs in this Microsoft basket. Take it from CMS Watch, the glory days might not last forever.

Tangled Web
Microsoft isn't making it easy. In a seminar about this topic I asked, "Why is it difficult to find the master CSS file?" The answer, "Because it's Microsoft." And that came from professionals in the Sharepoint game. Even if you finally figure out all the ins and outs, the bugs and cheats, it's likely you will want to upgrade to 2010. Start over...

Branding 
So, I take a Sharepoint template, then just drop my logo and styles in, right? Seems easy enough, we've all used templates in one form or another. Well, maybe not like this. Sharepoint templates are controlled by 8,000 (2007) to 20,000 (2010) lines of CSS. You'll have to sort through those to make your changes correctly.


Bottom Line 
The bottom line is I'm not convinced that this is the "better" way to make websites. You will have to start with this product then customize it to your needs, often through much headache, cost and confusion. If you already have skilled web developers, stick with that. There is sure to be another big thing soon enough that is better, bigger and more powerful.

An open letter to Google

Dear Google,

I'd like to start by thanking you for the innovation of search. How would I ever find my daily LOLs or proof for my insane random claims without you? Surely I could not.

While other "flashier" search engines have come along, they don't have the heart of my browser as you do. (And they aren't really ingrained into every application I download yet, either.) No, I'll never leave you. I shall use you until the end of time when I search for ways to fend off zombies during the apocalypse.

But we have a problem. I know, I know. Everything you do, you do for me. You want my life to be easy, streamlined and centralized. You want me to be able to find out everything about all my friends and random acquaintances in one click. I appreciate your concern, really, I do. But it's time for our social relationship to end.

You are perfect just the way you are, as a search engine. I don't need you to be my social network, my phone company and whatever the hell wave is. I know you are just trying to innovate. Hey, we all like to try new things now and then. But you see, I'm already in a stable, committed relationship with a fully-functional social network and so are my friends. He takes care of "those" needs. And besides, he has a bunch of my stuff--you know like pictures--and I don't want to have to go through the hassle of getting all that back just to be with you.

If I need to find a way to be even more connected, I'll test out some other sites...once in a while like Twitter for a quick fling or  LinkedIn when I want something serious). And, I'll even visit you once in a while. Like right now. Blogging away just to be close to you! Of course, then I'll just network this back to my social network and no one will ever really come here to view it. Le sigh.

Be great at what you do. Search for ways to be better, for me, for US. But don't ask me to change the way I share my love! We can make it work, Google. I know we can.

Love, 
Searching for Sanity

Make the most out of a small web team

There are a lot of companies out there in less tech-savvy cities like my own that for one reason or another have not built up the proper staff to truly benefit from their website and online marketing.

Large companies often have the budget, but may not always have the foresight. Small companies usually have the opposite problem.

Web professionals know that to have the most robust online presence you need more than one "web guy." You need staffers with various talents and specialties. The ideal situation would be to have teams working on each type of online marketing--usability, SEO, e-mail marketing, social marketing--and another to monitor analytics and make reports back to these teams to increase conversion and improve on your processes.

However, this is almost never the case. So what can you do if you only have the budget for one or two business-side web people?

1. Prioritize, Prioritize, Prioritize!
If you have one person who is supposed to do it all, he or she obviously lose it if you expect results in every area. The best way to approach your web strategy is to prioritize what you want to do by determining where you will get the best bang for your buck. The best plan is to prioritize based on your goals for the year.

2. Spread the love.
If you have a print writer, graphic designer, PR person or media buyer, you're in luck! There are a number of ways these people can help ease the load. Let the writer take care of the message and ask the web team only to edit for scannability online. Get the designer's help with layout for the site--don't count on your web person to know everything about layout. Usability and layout are not the same! A media buyer can be come your PPC/online advertising expert and take care of placing and tracking ads on search engines and in social media.

3. Hire the best and trust their judgment.
If you only have the budget for one or two people to run your online presence, go for the best. You want people who understand the web...not just people who can write content. A good test is to check his or her personal online presence. Is the applicant engaged in various levels of online tools? If you find the right people, you will be able to trust them and know that they are making the best recommendations.

4. Good analytics software.
If you can't afford another body to work on analytic reports and recommendations, then make sure your software can run itself fairly well. You may want to take the time to train stakeholders in viewing their own reports and translating them to actionable items. This way, the responsibility is spread throughout the organization.