1. Developing an
Effective Website
Heather Sweeting
heather@captovate.com.au
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2. About Me
About You
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3. What we’ll cover
• Planning for Success
• Getting Started
• Recipe for an Effective Website
• The Science and the Art
• A Solid Foundation
• Design – More than Just a Pretty Face
• Functionality – Basics to Bells & Whistles
• Getting it Out There – SEO, Social Media and Mobile
• Content is King
• Writing for the Web
• Make it Last – Managing your Website
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4. Planning for
Success
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5. Do I really need
a website?
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6. Do I really need a website?
 Over 2 billion internet users globally
 89.8% of Australians (19.5 million) on the internet
 88% of these use e-commerce
 28% of Australian businesses received orders
online, worth $189 billion
 Times are changing
 It just keeps growing...
Sources:
www.internetworldstats.com&www.digitalbusiness.com.au 6

7. Do I really need a website?
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8. Do I really need
a website?
Source: www.outrider.com.au
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9. What makes a
website
effective?
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10. What makes a website effective?
An effective website is one that meets the needs of your customers
and of your business
It gets your visitors to do what you want them to do, by making it
what they want to do
• Leads
• Online sales
• Offline sales
• Customer service
• High Google rankings
• Reputation / trust
• Distribute information
• And more...
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11. To create effective websites
You need to:
• Know your target market and their problems
• Understand your solution
• Nurture your relationships with your visitors
• Create more, better, optimised content
• Create more, better offers and calls to action
• Optimise landing pages
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12. Defining
Your Website’s
Purpose
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13. Defining your website’s purpose
• Brand awareness?
• Alternative to phone/store contact?
• Product and service details?
• Direct transactions and sales?
• Increase your audience base?
• Increase your digital footprint/SEO?
• Nurture Existing Relationships?
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14. The Elevator
Pitch…
Web Style
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15. The Elevator Pitch…Web Style
• Ever heard of the Elevator Pitch?
• Can you sum up your offer in 30 seconds?
• In 15 seconds?
• What about in five seconds?
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16. The Elevator Pitch…Web Style
The average user will spend less
than five seconds on a web
page before deciding whether or
not to click the dreaded ‘back
button’.
Can you capture them?
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17. Finding and
Understanding
your users
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18. Finding and Targeting your Audiences
• Who are your customers or desired
customers?
• Who are your audiences online?
• Where are they? Where are their ‘watering
holes?’
• Why would your audiences need your
information?
• What do they already know?
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19. User Research
• Use web analytics and data
• Talk to your targets
• Develop a profile or persona
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20. Problems and Solutions
• Identify problems for your audiences
• What worries them? What do they need?
• Align your offerings with solutions for your
audiences
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21. Your Website
Strategy
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22. Your Website Strategy
• Purpose
• Goals
• Target Audience
• Style and Tone
– Design, look and feel, language
• Functionality
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23. Setting goals for success
• What do you want customers to do with your
website?
• What will they achieve through visiting it?
• Can you define/measure what success looks like
to you?
• S.M.A.R.T. Goals
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24. Getting Started
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25. What
Resources Do
I Need?
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26. What Resources Do I Need?
• Budget
• Time
• Content
• Commitment
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27. How Do I Get
A Website?
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28. How Do I Get a Website?
Go to an agency
• Website design or digital media agencies should be able to help with all
elements of your website design and build
If you’re tech savvy you can:
• Download a free site builder such as WordPress
• Build one from scratch (a huge project)
 Where do you want to spend your money?
 Horses for courses
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29. Working with
an Agency
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30. Working with an Agency
Good builder / bad builder
• Content Management System
• Web Standards HTML
• Cascading Style Sheets
• Usability and Accessibility
• Information Architecture
• Intellectual Property
Track Record
• Examples of recent work
Service and Processes
• Full design and build
• A quick renovation
• Variations
• Maintenance
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31. What Do I
Need to
Provide?
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32. What Do I need to Provide?
What Agencies will expect of you
• Website Brief
• Logos, Images, Colours, Branding
• Professional Photography for top level pages
• Content
• Review and signoff at relevant stages
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33. Recipe for an
Effective Website
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34. Recipe for an Effective Website
• The Science and the Art
• A Solid Foundation
• Design – More than Just a Pretty Face
• Functionality – Basics to Bells & Whistles
• Getting it Out There – SEO, Social Media and Mobile
• Content is King
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35. The Science
and the Art
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36. What is Usability?
How easy it is for people to
understand and interact with
your website
• Does everything work the way it should?
• Cognitive Load – Don’t make me think!
36

37. How Readers Behave Online
(And Why it’s Different to Print)
Web content is usually read by users (as text)
Although it’s becoming more common to
• Watch (video)
• Listen (audio)
• Interpret (images and graphs)
But the internet is not a book…
…or a newspaper, magazine, brochure or report
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38. How Readers Behave Online
(And Why it’s Different to Print)
PRINT IS… WEB IS…
• Linear • Non-Linear
• Passive • Interactive
• Focussed • Disrupted
• Self Contained • Fragmented
Users read more slowly online, but they are
more impatient and faster to act
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39. How Readers Behave Online
79% of readers SCAN web pages
Scanning is not random, it can be:
• Directed
– looking for something specific
– jumps all over looking for an indicator, then reads in detail just that part
• Impressionable
– nothing specific in mind but open to key terms, phrases or ideas
– scans whole area more consistently but might not read comprehensively
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40. How Readers Behave Online
• Web users look for certain markers when scanning:
– Headings
– Links
– Bold words
– Lists
– Numbers
– Icons
• Users generally read in an ‘F’ shaped pattern, dipping in and out
of detail at key markers like sub-headings
• When a user catches a marker that is relevant, they’ll stop and
read the copy in a little more detail
• A user rarely reads a page of content through, word-for-
word, from start to finish, but they do read longer and take in
more when:
– Highly motivated – i.e. a news article they have selected
– Page is easy to scan
– Site is trustworthy
– Content is printable to read later
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41. Visual Communication: telling a thousand
words
• We are all visual communicators at heart
• Aesthetics, trust and positive perceptions
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42. A Solid
Foundation
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43. Information Architecture
Information Architecture is the ‘structure’ of a website. How the
pages are categorised and labelled, and how the user navigates
between them
Imagine your website is a tree:
• Your global navigation is the trunk that holds everything together
• Each category is a branch with its own local navigation
• Pages are leaves
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44. Information Architecture
• All of the pages and content within your website
should sit neatly within the information architecture
• A strong information architecture makes it easy and
intuitive for users to follow an ‘information trail’
• A poor information architecture makes for a
messy, disorganised site that users can’t easily make
sense of
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45. Information Architecture
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46. What is UX?
User Experience Design
Takes
the focus away from
technology
Defines what
the user actually
experiences in using the site
Whatthey will see, how they’ll
interact, how they might feel, the
actions they can take, the
outcomes
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47. Why UX?
Thoughtful
UX design ensures that
your website is squarely focussed
on your user – NOT pretty
design, cool functionality, or
internal information
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48. Wireframes
Define
the
presentation of
content
inventory, priori
ties and real
estate
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49. Navigation • Global and Local
• Multiple pathways to knowledge
• Expected locations
• Proximity, similarity and boundaries
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50. Domain Name and Hosting
• Always check to see if your domain is available
• Register with a reputable Australian company or organise
with your website designer
• Ensure the domain is registered in your business name
For Example use www.whois.com.au to check availability
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51. Content Management Systems:
Why You Need One
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Source: How to build a website & stay sane

52. Content Management Systems:
Why You Need One
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53. Accessibility
• The world wide web consortium W3C sets the web
standards for the world.
• Recently Governments and like organisations around the
world have put in policy to meet the W3C WCAG2.0
guidelines.
• Means people with disabilities have better access to
information.
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54. Website
Design - More
than just a
Pretty Face
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55. Website Design - More than just a
Pretty Face
• Guiding users to
content
• Setting a mood and
invoking emotion
• Clean white Space
• Style and
consistency
• Appropriate
Imagery
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56. What makes a good web image?
• Why stock photos don’t work
• Size and resolution
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57. Functionality -
Basics to Bells
and Whistles
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58. Everybody loves news and blogs
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59. Sign me up! Gaining prosects through
subscriptions
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60. Harnessing visuals with dynamic
sliders
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61. Search, and you will find
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62. Events and Calendars
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63. Image and Video Galleries
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64. Online forms are good form
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65. Leading the way with Maps
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66. Making the Sale – E-Commerce
• Placing an order
should be simple and
straightforward
• Ensure trust
• What happens after
order placement?
• Secure transactions
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67. Payment
• Payment before delivery – big advantage!
• The more options for payment, the more
sales
• Merchant accounts –
Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Diners
• PayPal, PayMate
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68. Getting it
Out There
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69. Getting it out there
• Search Engine Optimisation
• Social Media
• Taking it Mobile – Mobile Sites, Apps, Tablet, Phone
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70. Content is King
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71. All Kinds of Content
• Educational Text
• information gathering Photos
Graphics
• Problem-solving
Video
• Get the best deal
Downloads
• Entertainment Audio
Content You Can Trust
• Benefits AND features
• Case studies and clients
• Contact Us, We're Real!
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72. Writing for the Web
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73. How to Plan
Content for
your Audience
(Not your Organisation)
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74. How to Plan Content for your Audience
(Not your Organisation)
• People use the internet for INFORMATION – they are
here to find something out.
• Be generous with the information you provide.
• Making a web page simple and easy to read doesn’t
mean reducing the amount of information you provide...
• it’s just about providing it in the right way
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75. How to Plan Content for your Audience
(Not your Organisation)
Before you start to write your website’s content, you
should have a good idea of:
• Who your audience is
• What the purpose of your website is (for you and for them)
• What the most important task or information is for your user
• What they want to know and what they already know
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76. How to Plan Content for your Audience
(Not your Organisation)
Be wary of organisation-centric thinking:
• “Big words and formal writing makes us look important”
• “Our audience is ‘everyone’, or the ‘general public’”
• “This is our message, just put it on the web and people will
get it”
• “Our website is a reflection of our organisational structure”
• “We should just put all our existing information on the web”
• “It’s only the website, they can contact us for more
information”
• “Our website should reflect our print publications”
• “Just make it look good, nobody reads it anyway”
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77. Plan Your
Pages
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78. Plan Your Pages
The Home Page
• Communicates who you are, what
you do, what you offer and
demonstrates trust, credibility and
expertise
• Starting point for high-priority tasks
(above the fold, users are less likely
to scroll on a home page)
• Something new and current about
you (builds confidence)
• Average time on home page is less
than 30 seconds
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79. Plan Your Pages
Landing Pages
• The first pages a user ‘lands
on’, whether entering different
sections of the site, or from an
external source (like a search engine)
• Section landing pages should give an
overview of all the content within
that particular section
– Confirm who the section is for and what
it’s about
– Run through the options of what a user
can find out or achieve within the section
(linking where relevant)
• All pages are potential landing pages
, so always give enough context on
the page to show the user where
they are
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80. Plan Your Pages
Internal Content Pages
• The ‘nuts and bolts’ of your site
, the pages within each section or
category
• Where your core information is
given in as much detail as necessary
for your audience
• Don’t worry too much about page
length on internal content pages.
Users are comfortable with scrolling
when the text is easy to scan and
read.
• Scrolling is less labour intensive
than finding the next thing to click
on
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81. Structuring
Your Content
for Easy
Reading
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82. Structuring Content for Easy Reading
Remember the user’s scanning behaviour?
• Structure your content like an inverse pyramid, with the most
important messages at the top.
• Cover all your most important information in the first two
paragraphs, leading with the first two sentences.
• Give context and answer key questions near the top
• Break your content into bite-sized chunks. Keep your
paragraphs short and messages concise. One idea per
paragraph.
• Headings within a page help to break up your text, making it
easier to scan and providing a quick outline of the information
within each paragraph or section
• Draw the eye with lists, bullets and links
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83. Structuring Content for Easy Reading
Styling your content
• The styling of your content (fonts, sizes, coloursetc) should
be consistent throughout the site
• The user then knows what different styles indicate and
that they mean the same thing everywhere
• Use ‘markup styles’ - the style settings built into your
website’s code, such as Heading 1, Heading 2 and
Paragraph
• Good styling ensures consistency for the user and helps
with Search Engine Optimisation
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84. Structuring Content for Easy Reading
Anatomy of a page
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85. Your Voice and
Writing Style
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86. Your Voice and Writing Style
• Your website, and the content within it, is an extension of your brand
• Your voice is the unique style and personality of your organisation
• Write in a way your audience will understand and relate to.
• Studies show that regardless of what level they’re at, ALL users appreciate
and respond better to simplified language when reading online.
• Keep your language simple and jargon-free
• Put yourself in the user’s shoes, and think about how words and phrases
sound when spoken out loud in their head.
• Use an active voice rather than a passive voice
• NOTHING kills your credibility faster than mistakes in your content, so
PROOF, PROOF, PROOF!!
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87. Your Voice and Writing Style
What describes your website’s voice?
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88. Content that
Sells
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89. Content that Sells
• The art of sales copy • Give me some action!
• AIDA and the 7 point plan • Leads and prospects
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90. Content that Sells
AIDA Seven part structure
• Attention
• Attention,
• Problem
• Interest,
• Desire, • Solution
• Action • Product
• Proof
• Offer
• Action
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91. Make your
Words Work
for You
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92. Making your Words Work for You
SEO and your Web Content
• Search Engine Optimisation (or SEO) is all about setting
up your website and your content in a way that helps
Search Engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing to understand
what your site is about.
• Search Engine robots ‘read’ all the content on your
website, and look for clues as to what your site is about
• When you write and format your web content, make sure
you use the terms you want to rank for in Search Engines
(called ‘keywords’ ) in the correct ‘clue’ locations to
maximise your chances
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93. Making your Words Work for You
SEO and your Web Content
Think about your keywords – use a variety of
terms and configurations that your audiences
might know
Use your keywords regularly in:
• Headings
• Links
• Page titles
• Beginnings of paragraphs
• Page and image metadata
Add new content to your website regularly and link
to it from other places like Social Media
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94. Making it Last
Managing your Website
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95. Monitoring
with Web
Analytics
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96. Metrics you can use
• How many visitors?
• How many leads?
• How many
conversions?
• How long on site?
• Which page did they
enter?
• Which page did they
leave?
• Etc.
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97. Don’t set and forget!
Regularly
updated content is crucial
for SEO and user confidence.
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98. Pricing Costing Quoting
Questions?
Heather Sweeting
• Peter Shepherd
• Business & Community Developments Pty
Ltd
heather@captovate.com.au
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