A website that is clear, simple and easy to navigate could increase your sales by 100 per cent, as suggested by the latest research.

It appears that even if your products are less compelling than your competitors, if your website is clean and un-complicated visitors will stay on your site longer and are more likely to buy.

With the fast pace of life these days we expect things to be quick, easy and fuss-free. A website that is clearly marked out and easy to navigate will be more appealing than one that is complicated and busy.

With this in mind a website should be designed for the consumer. The quality of consumers’ online experience determines how long they stay on a site and whether they choose to make a purchase. Good website design coupled with good copywriting could convert up to 100 per cent more than a poor website.

User-centred design (UCD) optimises the principles of designing a website around how people can, want or need to work, rather than forcing the user to change how they work to accommodate the developers design. At each stage of the website design process the wants, needs and limitations of the end user should be evaluated. Rather than dictating how the user will use a website any site should be designed giving the user what they want. Jakob Neilsen, the grandfather of UCD said it doesn’t matter what a website looks like, just as long as it works for the user. Whether you agree with this statement or not the message is the same – usability is the key.

Many websites these days use Flash, and yes, this can make it look very pretty and appealing, but this needs to be weighted up with functionality. Making things bright and swishy doesn’t naturally comply with DDA (Disability Discrimination Act) and Flash content isn’t read by search engines. This begs the question – why use Flash? A well written site doesn’t need Flash, so wouldn’t you prefer a fully integrated site that everyone can see?

There is so much to think about these days when it comes to designing a website, Web 2.0 being one of the latest buzz words.  Web 2.0 design style allows users to do more than simply find information, it provides greater user participation, a richer user experience and dynamic content. Web 2.0 also demonstrates clean, simple, basic lines – less is more, as they say!

Google, the most visited website on the planet is the prime example of the perfect website.  It’s simple, clean and it just works – what more do you want, it doesn’t need to do anything else! Everyone recognises it you know what it does and it just does it – no big Flash banners, it’s not crammed with text and pictures – it just is.

A website is not a piece of art and it’s not the same as designing a poster. People view websites in completely different ways, whether it’s different browsers, operating system, security software, screen size, resolution, hardware or speed of connection. Designing a website must be about the user experience otherwise people will get bored and go somewhere else. Research shows that it takes only eight seconds for someone to choose whether to stay on a website or not so a site needs to be good enough to catch someone’s eye, but not complicated so that they don’t stay on the site.

Mystery meat navigation is something that some ‘designed’ websites use. Although they may look nice and pleasing on the eye the navigation is inefficient and confusing. If a website is complicated and unclear visitors will not stay on the site. It is not recommended to use something that people are unfamiliar with as they won’t know how to use it and it is a sure fire way of losing a sale.

When designing a website one of the key characteristics is functionality. If a site is clear and easy to use visitors will stay on the site longer, make return visits, bookmark the site and tell their friends.  It’s not enough just to think about the colour and what its visual impact is, you must think about what people are coming to the site for. People expect a website to tell them what to do, so make things obvious to guide them. A website is often the first point of contact a company has with a potential customer, so make a good impression.

Press releases are a great way to get publicity without spending huge amounts of money.  They are a powerful tool that helps get your business noticed, but with editors receiving hundreds of press releases each day you need to make sure yours stands out.  Here are my top tips on writing a press release that editors will want to read and publicise.

1. Know your subject
   Make sure you know the subject you are writing about.  If you don’t then do some research.  If you are writing a press release that your product “can make people’s life easier” or you can “guarantee to triple sales in a week” then you need to be able to convince the editor too.
2. Is your news “newsworthy”?
   Not all news is newsworthy.  A press release is to inform about your news item, not to make a sale.  If your press release sounds like an advert, re-write it. A press release should answer the questions who?, what?, when?, where? and why?
3. Effective headline
   Use a headline that has maximum impact and effectiveness.  The headline is what the editor will see first about your press release so it needs to be catchy and wanting them to read more.
4. Third person
   A press release should be written in the third person, as if you were a journalist writing it.
5. Structure
   A press release should have a beginning, middle and an end.  Following the headline should be a newsworthy summary giving more information about the news item.  It is these first few words that count towards the success of getting the press release published or not. The middle will provide information backing up the summary.  The end will be a ‘call to action’ such as “for more information call…” and a round-up of the information in the press release.
6. Notes to editors
   In the notes to editors include a boilerplate with some general information on the company issuing the release.
7. Proofread
   Always proofread your press release.
8. Press information
   Include media contact information, including name, phone number and email address.
9. Quotes
   Quotes can hold a great deal of weight to a press release, but offer quotes that are relevant to the news item.
10. Media distribution
    Compile a media distribution list that is relevant to the press release being written. Don’t send a press release to every media contact you have “just in case”, this can be harmful to your relationship with them if they are constantly receiving news items that do not interest them.  A well constructed media list will have a bigger impact.

In the years I have spent writing for journalists and reporters I have discovered that writing for the web is a completely different ball-game.
Information is consumed differently online, from the readers’ attention span, navigation behaviour and scanning habits, not to mention how a website is ‘picked up’ by search engines and the important key words that they look for. Good writing for paper needs to be effective writing for the web.