TRENDS IN WEB SITE DEVELOPMENT

TRENDS IN WEB SITE DEVELOPMENT

By S. Hunter

Many years ago when I first logged onto the Internet it was a much different picture then what viewers see today. Back then the web was primarily information based, at the time there were no flashing "Click Me" advertising banners, few graphics, java wasn't yet developed and corporations, including software giant Bill Gates' company Microsoft weren't even looking at the Internet as a serious growth industry or advertising vehicle. And WebTV, what was that?

WHAM, the rapid growth of the Internet has shocked everyone. Today advertisers are scrambling to get a web site, they're booking banners in high traffic sites, and purchasing key words in the search engines to get an edge over competitors, and on and on. But like any "new" discovery, the Internet has undergone, and will continue to undergo many many changes.

What I find most interesting is the evolution that has taken place in a matter of a few short years with respect to web site design. Some years ago, if you were one of those early pioneers who had a home page, chances are it had a standard cold gray background. The text was sure to be black, you may have had one graphic on your site, and of course there was no Active X, Java, shock wave or video stream. Then with the flood of software development and a revitalizing flow of corporate dollars being pumped in to the Internet; change was rapid!

Web Sites have gone from offering basic information to resembling a cheap Las Vegas act complete with bright gaudy colours, annoying flashing text, scrolling marquees, animated graphics endlessly flashing "click me." Then there came frames, Active X, Java, Shock Wave and a variety of other "cool things" sure to crash the browsers of many and plunge others into an endless waiting game for such programs to load. Inexperienced programmers hoping to dazzle their high paying advertisers created web sites that no longer provided easy to find useful information but instead annoyed, frustrated and turned off viewers.

So what kind of site do you find on the web now? Oh you will still find plenty of flashing this and flashing that. If you are using an outdated browser, chances are that some sites will just not work for you, but more and more you will see a trend in web site development that goes back to what we saw in early sites - sleek simplicity. Take an example from one of the granddaddy web sites - Yahoo. From day one, Yahoo has maintained a site that does what it is intended to do. Yahoo is a search directory. What do you want to do at Yahoo? Yes, search. So that's what the smart people at Yahoo have done. They have never forgotten the initial purpose of their site; to provide information. They've sacrificed "flash effects" for what really matters to folks searching for information; ease of use and quick results. Of course, Yahoo has made changes to their site over the years but everything they've added has served to enhance their central purpose - not detract from it. Take a look at your own site or the sites you've developed. Is your site trying to dazzle more than it is to inform and sell products? Do visitors to your site have to "interpret" or read between the lines to determine what your site is offering them? Remember, ultimately your site is for the visitor. Yes, your site contains information on your products and services but must be presented in a manner that is for the benefit of the viewer (your customers.)

Surf around the web and you will notice an interesting change has taken place. Flashy, glitzy, tech wizardry is being replaced with sites that are sleek; sites that are easy to use; and sites that have a definite purpose and intent. Many web site designers reading this can learn a good lesson from sites like Yahoo and that is, always consider the following;

Who will be using the site and for what purpose?

What does the advertiser hope to accomplish with their web site?

Craft your site around the answers to these questions from a viewers perspective, and I guarantee your site will see better results. Each time you revamp a site or make additions, make sure you are on the same path by asking the questions again and again.

Sandi Hunter and George Kosch are Co-Founders of Worldprofit at http://www.worldprofit.com

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