I’ll admit that, no matter how careful we are, there will be mistakes that will slip onto our websites.
Personally, although years and years ago I taught copyediting courses at Temple University in Center City Philadelphia, I’m sure there are a few errors on this website that have gotten past my copyediting. (Plus there are two major schools of thought on commas — and I belong to the less is more school.)
But I try very hard to have accurate copy because I know that typos and other errors can reflect badly on my brand.
WHY DOESN’T EVERYONE WHO HAS A WEBSITE GET THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS?
If you’re not good at spotting errors, or if you know that your English could be improved, hire a copyeditor. The money you invest in your professional image is well worth it.
And this brings me to my second point about what your website says about you:
Does your website say that you care how easy it is for a first-time visitor to navigate your site? Or does your website say that you don’t care?
In other words, have you taken the time to look at your website through the eyes of a person arriving on your site for the first time?
If you had done this, would you really put the login button in very tiny pink type against a black background? (Yes, I just had to hunt all over a home page of such a site to find the login button. Imagine how pleased I was to FINALLY discover the tiny pink button.)
Of course on your own site you know where the login button is. It’s your site!
But why spend time and money on SEO and links and guest blogging and article marketing and everything else if you’re going to lose people’s attention because you haven’t provided a well-thought-out user experience?
I know that most people reading this post who have a website will say to themselves: “It’s not my site she’s talking about. My site is very easy to navigate.”
And I challenge you to go to your home page and truly look at every element:
- Do you have so many navigation choices that a visitor is overwhelmed and can’t figure out what to do so she/he leaves your site?
- Do you have a main headline that has very little to do with what is on offer on your site? (And if you have WELCOME in gigantic letters you’re really wasting prime home page real estate.)
- Do you have a membership site where the login button is very hard to find? (Sure, after the first time or two people might remember where it is — even if it is in tiny pink lettering against a black background. But do you really want to frustrate people when they are deciding whether they want to commit to being active on your site?)
Bottom line? Try to look at every element on your home page through the eyes of a first-time visitor. Then objectively evaluate whether you have made this experience a pleasant one or a frustrating one. The power is in your hands to tip the balance one way or the other.
I hope you choose making the experience a pleasant one. And if you want help identifying elements on your website that could be improved, check out the Miller Mosaic website review. It’s a great way to kick start improving your website’s user experience.
(c) 2010 Miller Mosaic, LLC
Phyllis Zimbler Miller has an M.B.A. from The Wharton School and is co-founder of the social media marketing company Miller Mosaic Power Marketing. Get her FREE report “How to Monetize Your Site/Blog Without Ads” at http://www.millermosaicllc.com/monetize-your-site
