One article that has made the rounds of Applecore’s inboxes is Paul Boag’s 10 Harsh Truths About Corporate Websites, which we originally found on Smashing Magazine. As Boag states in his introduction:
We all make mistakes running our websites. However, the nature of those mistakes varies depending on the size of your company. As your organization grows, the mistakes change. This post addresses common mistakes among large organizations.
We took these 10 harsh truths and added our own viewpoints, and what your company can do to change them.
1. You Need a Separate Web Division
There needs to be one division for web. Period. And it’s for this reason that outsourcing your web needs is so helpful: no one trespasses on anyone’s turf, and decisions are made for the benefit of the website, rather than anyone’s ego. A single unified team means that the website won’t be a brochure, or an extended resume: it will be an accurate representation of your company’s daily life, and often, objective outsiders can provide the best picture.
2. Managing Your Website is a Full-Time Job
This is self-explanatory. In order for a website to be truly useful, it needs to have a dedicated team. But something else to think about: it needs to have a dedicated team that’s empowered to make forward-thinking changes.
3. Periodic Redesign is Not Enough
Careful consideration through every stage of the website’s life, along with a willingness to tweak minor things that don’t seem to need drastic makeovers, can save so many hours of redesign in the long run. Sometimes, the only way to get this kind of insight is by asking a third party to consult.
4. Your Website Cannot Appeal to Everyone
A website designed without this in mind will be too incoherent to serve your business well. You can’t please everyone. You can, however, determine which of your demographics is the most important to your business.
5. You are Wasting Money on Social Networking
In other words, when you proceed into social networking, make sure you understand what makes social media work: that it’s people connecting to people, not just another venue to talk about your company. Use social networking to make your company more human, because at the end of the day, no one wants to visit your blog or Twitter account if they don't get anything in return.
6. Your Website is Not All About You
Self explanatory. No jargon, no insider acronyms. Your website isn’t being designed to suit the tastes of your staff; it’s being built to cater to the needs of your users. After all, they’ll be the ones spending their time there, so their requirements shouldn’t be ignored.
7. You’re Not Getting Value From Your Web Team
A web designer brings much more to the table than simple programming. They understand what makes a website work, what translate best to the web and what features are most helpful to a user. Use this amazing resource to produce the best possible website.
8. Design by Committee Brings Death
Harsh, but accurate. Design by committee is well-intentioned, meant to give everyone a fair stake in the decision making process. However, often what’s required is an educated, objective decision.
9. A CMS is Not a Silver Bullet
A Content Management System is like any tool— it won’t make the decisions for you; it can only make the decisions easier to implement. You need to have the resources in place for timely, relevant updates.
10. You Have Too Much Content
Constant review of content ensures that there’s no useless information taking away from your most important messages—only what is fresh, relevant and useful.
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Does any of this sound familiar? If so, interact with us--the solution is closer than you think.
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