Web Publishng Secrets (Demystified)
Welcome to the Internet! For those that our "old hats" at this, then welcome
to our humble webportal with over a thousand pages. Right now, you are in what
is termed the "Advertiser's Backdoor" which is meant for the eyes of our commercial advertisers.
Oh, I'm sure some consumers will get lost, click on "Advertisers" on one of our
shopper's pages, but they will soon leave when they figure out it is all technical stuff
and nothing for sale. For all those folks, click here.
The Opportunity
We all get excited when we learn of an opportunity that will benefit our business in advertising
and communicating with our customer-base and potential customers. Our philosophy and
therefore our premise here is that every advertiser should have their own space, or (web) page(s)
because there is no good reason otherwise. You do not have space restrictions as found
in just about every other media. In fact, you can expand as you go, or do some planning
up front. We hope you agree with us that like any good ad copy, ie, "camera ready," you
put some thought into it and it isn't a "rush job."
We expect many of you to be confused, and need our assistance in planning your advertising project.
We like to refer to it as a project versus a display ad because of the unlimited scope in space and message.
Now we are not trying to make you buy more than you need. In fact, either at the end
of this page in the "Illustrations Galore" Section or somewhere else in the "Advertiser's Backdoor" Information Center
will be plenty of examples of taking a 3-5 page website and combining them into one (1) long anchor page.
Let's just say that that is Secret No. 1, ie, you do not need to spread out when concise will serve you just fine.
Three-in-One Anchor Page Illustration
Secret Tip No. 2
Stick to the K.I.S.S. method. You are in business and whether you have ever published a 3-fold brochure,
or even a business card, you can ill afford to get all "hollyweird" with your web publishing. Now, if
you hire some kid, or amateur to publish for you, you just might find out when it is too late that they decided to
take "their" opportunity and experiment with your business message.
The first step in planning your web page or pages is to create the equivalent of a "storyboard" that list, or outlines
all the various sections you are planning to publish. This will serve several technical purposes in
documenting the maintenace (cycle) for your advertising project plus keep the internal navigation as succinct as
possible and ultimately let you create (or us) a model template to work from for all the page(s).
As a senior computer programmer with three decades of experience, I have managed multi-million projects for
aerospace where I have had junior programmers that want to jump in and start coding so that they can see something
that works without proper planning. In our teaching process, we consider this to be enthusiasm for
the work, but after we have had the opportunity to train such an individual, it really becomes a pain when they
need to waste project time to fix things because of the lack of proper planning.
When you do that in publishing, well, your work looks like a bad maintenance job before you even finish it.
Now, this is where we come in. Those three decades of technical expertise weren't wasted on
low-end coding work, but diversified assignments including systems analysis where a business solution is
designed on paper before the programming starts. With an interview-type session, or presentation
of all the various documents and imagery you want to use, an understanding of what you are attempting to
accomplish, we will be able to prepare a professional storyboard for you that you may review at your project
option, quoted up front, or proof shakedown once we have everything just about published to 90-95%.
Secret Tip No. 3
Stick with simple navigation links and menu infrastructure and stay away from tools designed to add
pizazz to your pages. Again, this is definitely related to the K.I.S.S. method,
but you would be surprised just how many people need to be reminded that it isn't wild color schemes
that are not appropriate for your industry or business, but communicating your product or service
to potential customers. I can't tell you how many sites that I have seen that I couldn't
find their telephone no. just to call them and make an inquiry. What a waste.
Secret Tip No. 4
Publish based upon a template model. You have done your homework, planning, and storyboard.
Now, you want to think more about your personal color scheme. For what it's worth,
white background is always appropriate. I just did a facelift for the Law Firm of Huang.
I got into it so much that during the proofing shakedown, I changed to a subtle justice scales
as a wallpaper, Click here,
for the complete story, "Attorney Corner."
In any case, your template model could have the technical, online navigation links along the right margin
versus what many may think is some sort of defacto standard, the left margin. It isn't.
When you place the links along the left (column,) you lose a lot of precious real estate both on the screen and
truncation when you print a page. Frames always had this problem and I never published a site with
frames.
Secret Tip No. 5
There are many technical suggestions, and one of them is to be careful with all page links both
to another physical page and internal to the page. Nothing makes you look unprofessional
than "dead links." Many ISPs (Internet Service Providers) even provide you with options
for a special page to appear and/or to go to. This does not take you to the root of the
problem, and often times is sufficient that that potential customer will click away and go somewhere else.
Simple things that a good secretary normally does for you is check your spelling and grammar and punctuation.
Like email, some people feel that it is "forgiving" when you error on a web page.
I guess it depends on the profession. I know if an accountant, lawyer or doctor had such
discrepancies, click -- I'm gone.
Secret Tip No. 6
Have a "What's New" page. This will keep people coming back, bookmark your page, etc.
Take off things that are dated, eg, an event planned and past. It is
amazing how many sites have "stale cookes," ie, references to an "up'n coming" event that is over
2 years old -- worse, 4 years old! Some people may think it is cool.
I mean, that even was significant and you want the world to know about it -- even though it is over.
Fine. Revise the information putting it in the past tense and possibly take if off the "What's New"
page and put in on some "historical events" of the company page. Nothing could be worse than have
a potential customer get all excited about attending an event you published only to find out that it was last year,
or later. Then the "negative vibes" begin.
Secret Tip No. 7
The photo imagery you select add to first impressions. Your consistent look'n feel for your
various web page model template, coupled with choice color scheme and professional font all make a difference,
but the imagery can be key to Internet bandwidth success. Bandwidth, not to be confused with
broadband, has to do with how long your web page(s) take todownload to their computer. If they
have a telephone dial-up connection, expect the speed to be slow while cable connections have optimum
performance.
What a professional does is not only pick good images to represent the theme or business, but sizing, or
cropping to reduce the bulk size of the image file. A background full-size image with
a "click on" thumbnail on the page is a popular method. But, key pages should have good
looking (impression) imagery.
Secret Tip No. 8
Cosmetic considerations is the use of lines, vertical and horizontal. Spacing techniques
too. You would never publish a word processing document with the text right up next to a line.
So, why do people find it acceptable online? May be they do not know how to
rectivy or correct the problem. It really isn't difficult. In fact, I have
always engineered with exact pixel counts in mind to give the page whether consciously or subconsciously
a uniform look. For a good example, see Heavy Hitter.
Another key issue for cosmetics, semi-cosmetic, is choice of font (and mixing fonts.)
People knew to desktop publishing, as we call it, will make the most outrageous documents with all
types of fonts, point-size and even introduction of colors. A font or family of fonts
should be selected based upon the message industry, eg, professional should stick of a formal font
such as "Book Antiqua" while a technical message, it is find to use a font such as "Verdana."
Attorney Lerner chose to use a technical font, Verdana, where I revised his page (less lines, etc.)
and used exclusively Book Antiqua.
Secret Tip No. 9
Plan for a "proof shakedown." If you have only a few pages, this exercise won't take you a half hour.
What this will do is create an image of your overall site in your mind for future reference and some
consideration for future updates. The web is an "electronic pencil," dynamic and just waiting for your
to change something and automaticall be ready for viewing anywhere.
If you have a staff, or significant partner, have their eyes give your published pages a look and test "drive."
You may be surprised to find that what you assume, another does not understand and if someone else
has a problem, what about your potential customers?
In any case, I have already covered "dead links," but I am always amazed when a professional website for a website
designer service has bad links either on their homepage or a significant page. Often times, in such
cases, I am looking for my competitor's rates, what they charge for similar services. And, when the
link is dead or just doesn't work, I am puzzled.
Anchor Plus Concept & Facelift
This shop on Sahara at Torrey Pines has got all the components to be successful:
an intro (homepage,) products'n services page and of course, contact info page.
Obviously, the designer believes in simplicity and motivating a potential customer to either
pick up the phone to make an inquiry, or get in their car and come to the shop.
Cosmetic Only Adjustments
It would be easy to make more "adjustments" to the three web pages in the site
except that would defeat the purpose of comparing
our work with theirs. Yes, we included several of our standard features
because I knwo that they are appreciated, eg,
dynamic mapping with Google™, preferred font and renovated by hand (not generated for optimum bandwidth performance.)
Before & After Pages
Here is a side by side comparison and if you like, you can leave a browser window open on both versions
in order to fairly compare the differences, again, that are only cosmetic, ie, same message/text.
Homepage (Anchor):
Original
Shop LV
Services:
Original
Shop LV
Contact:
Original
Shop LV
Notice: to compare our (snappy) bandwidth optimization, open only the homepage of each, our anchor page,
and then "click" thru the two other pages: services and contact. I know, it is hard
to compare ligthning and molasses,
but we do with pride!
Warning: about the white font used in the website, it was not our choice and we did not want to
change the background color scheme to accommodate blank font. I must say, it works here.
Re: "Dress for Success," a popular clothing advisory book originally published in the 70's,
speaks of the use of browns
and such a color scheme that admits confidence.
Illustrations Galore [Click on any photo image for an illustration.]
re: Al's Pool Service (Business Card Package Illustration)
Unfortunately, Al (evidently) did not have much marketing (traffic) success with his website
and a golden rule I broke (capture images of the illustration pages) because the website is history.
Let me describe it for you. (a) Did not use a water or pool service theme
wallpaper like we did in the makeover, (b) it was a vertical page (versus maximize the page real estate
horizontally) and (c) redundant in the information on the very same page.
We converted Al's homepage (anchor) into the equivalent of our "business card" page .. not much more to say.
See this facelift!
.. then, get your Business Card!
Business Card Package
Intro $50 Renew @ $25
Order Form
Illustration
Background Info
.. a Plumber
.. a Techi Card
From a Flyer to
.. a Handyman Business Card Page; ready to be
"spidered" by the Search Engines.
No more flyers!!! Your (new) customers can
print your page/flyer
from their computer!
Babysitting Service Wallpaper Ideas
 Ready -
Landscape
Portrait
Theme wallpaper for a particular industry such as a babysitting service is
an excellent idea. White background with a theme border, or
off-white background, or matted background color to match the eye-drawing
children image -- you decide:
Little Girl
Series
Off White.
Or, only background color that matched the children image,
the Matted Look, or
White.
.. excellent for professionals or those that just want a web page with contact info linked in the webportal
Compare
Color Chart
 \
Before & After Illustrations
re: Town & Country Mechanical (Anchor Page Only Package Illustration)
As we digress, it is only fitting to show two illustrations of websites that could have been a lot less.
Town & Country Mechanical had three pages that with the
redundancy (and
layout) taken into
consideration, could have easily been integrated into one (1) anchor page (only.)
Website
After
Printer Ready -
Before "as is"
After Business Stationary look ..
Glen Lerner, Personal Injury Lawyer
- the Heavy Hitter
See Injury Law Category.
Glen's website
and Shop LV Version (Incomplete .. without navigation links, etc.)
.. have it your way, the space of a mini-website embedded in our webportal providing you with multiple pages
Compare
Illustration
Before &
After
@ Bill's About Page ..
Get your own about page, service page, plus anchor homepage
with our Anchor Plus
Package
for (drum roll...) $250! .. and, never a monthly web-hosting fee!
|
Blueprint for Success Click here for details.
It seems the No. 1 complaint that we receive is .. "too much information."
.. an important category that really needs their own websites, but not any more -- our webportals
will provide your restaurant the space to (a) tell your story and (b) provide you with either a menu
comparable to your table menu, or fast food or something in between..
Compare
Restaurant Menus
Read On
Business Stationary Style Publishing
"Exercise in
Business Stationary
Style Publishing"
Click thru
@ Shop-OC
Two Pages (Before)
Business websites should consider printing their website pages as if they were prepared on company
stationary. That is, aligned to fit on a page without residue to a second page.
We chose Smith & Edwards Services page because of the inherent problems that are easily remedied.
Please take a look at the before and see how many things
on the published page are not necessary.
Redundant "Gift Registry" hyper-link and separate lines
for the two other hyper-links just adds to the vertical spacing and therefore, overall length of the web page;
causing a definite page plus when printed.
Back to the top of the page when it is a short page, equivalent
to an 8 x 11.5 piece of paper definitely is wasted vertical space.
Horizontal lines is the last unnecessary item found
at the top, after the two sections and at the bottom for three lines. Take them out; you will have
more space separating the heading (just like business stationary) and you can shift the copyright notice at the
bottom down. We are finished.
We hope by breaking (yet) another lesson down into four illustrations, ie, "before" and three "after's" brings
home the concept of keeping your website or web pages business like by presenting a business stationary look.
|
| Anchor Plus Package
3-in-1 Illustration
Here is a good illustration of taking a 3-page website
and combining the webpages into one long anchor page.
Before (Website Homepage)
-
After (Shop LV Version)
Portrait -
Before and "After"
Page 1 &
Page 2
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Frank Picchione
Owner & Operator
Resume
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(702) 326-6753
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is smart business!
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Frank Picchione, your Ad Designer & Host
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