Chapter 7 focuses on the home page of a website. The home page contains a good bit of info: site identity and mission; site hierarchy (content, features, persistent navigation); a search function; teases (promos); timely content; deals; shortcuts (to regularly used links); and registration (if applicable). That’s just the tip of the iceberg.
I like the analogy that a “home page is like waterfront property; everyone wants a piece of it” but there isn’t enough to go around. There’s so much the home page has to convey to the user, and it has to be done well and at a glance. One of the most important goals is to convey the big picture – “make it clear what the sites is.” Does it answer: What is this? What do they have here? What can I do? Why should I be here and not somewhere else?
Most users will probably try to guess what the site is first from the overall content of the home page. I’ve noticed that I scan a website, especially the book example, and do just that – what does it look like at first glance, is this something I’m interested in, where’s the stuff I need?
Some of what I read was timely information, for example the welcome blurb shouldn’t be the mission statement. I’m currently working on a class project for an actual client and they do exactly that. The information about the tagline is good to keep in mind as well. While it may be obvious, some key points in a tagline are: be clear and informative, use six-to-eight words to convey a full thought, and convey the benefit – what makes it great.
No comments:
Post a Comment