Effective Internet Use
Panel Discussion with Peter Rothschild, Pete Jorgensen and Laura
Clark
Thursday, December 12, 2002
Many options are available for free or low-cost hosting. CD’s were available at the convention (and are available online). Lecturers also recommend checking out what other GMO’s have done and to copy the good ideas. Make use of the free software available for calendars, bulletin boards, etc.
USABILITY = SIMPLICITY
The web is the ultimate customer-empowering environment. The customer’s needs should be at the center of the design strategy. Ask yourself: what content is user looking for?
White space is NOT your enemy. It can guide the eye, and can help the user understand the information.
Keep asking yourself: what are the top 3 reasons that people visit your site? This question helps to keep your focused so that you don’t lose your visitor’s interest.
Why do visitors return?
- High quality of content
- Frequent updates
- Minimal download time
- Ease of use
General words of wisdom:
- Shorter is better.
- People don’t like to scroll.
- All caps decrease readability.
- Write for scannability—use keywords.
- Remember this is the world-wide web—language skills vary.
- Start pages with conclusion.
- Avoid humor, metaphor, subtlety.
- Link liberally. Consider “see also” links.
- Format links consistently. Changing colors on links, although creative, confuses users. Sometimes conformity pays off—this is one of them.
- Critical content should be in the top left 640 x 800, especially on the home page.
- Headers in Sans
Serif. Text block in Serif. Use fonts made for the web. NO SCRIPT.
Content suggestions:
- Calendar or schedule of events
- Bulletin Board
- Consider rules: unique e-mail address, membership req’d to view or create posts
- Competition Information: contact Show Managers, Secretaries and ASK them for the information. Let them know the resource is available. PDF preferable, since it is searchable by search engines.
- Ride times
- Scores
- Classified Ads--can be self-service, with or without photos (for fee): requires minimal maintenance by webmaster
Return to 2002 convention table of contents.