Site Graphics And Other Jazzy Bits
by Azam Corry
What's the number 1 reason why people leave web sites?
Do you know? Not sure?
It's slow page load!
Did you get that? Let me repeat it again ... slow page load!
In fact, judging by what I see online, I'd better shout it out so that everyone can hear me clearly ...
PEOPLE LEAVE WEB SITES WITH SLOW PAGE LOAD!!
"Eh?", you're thinking "What's this guy on about, I've got a great site, nice layout, well written, interesting ... they'll wait for my page to load!"
They might ...
IF they've been there before.
But what about all those first time visitors? Unless they're pretty certain that it's going to be worth the wait...
bye-bye!
They've gone! So has the marketing time, effort and cost it took for you to get them there! It doesn't matter how good your site is, if you make a new visitor wait too long, chances are they won't.
They'll never see all your hard work ... what a waste!
Speedfreaks
The very nature of the Internet adds a sense of urgency to the online experience of most users. The majority of people online are fairly new to the net. They are overwhelmed by this exciting new world they've discovered.
There's so much to see and so little time in which to see it. The cost of time online contributes to these feelings. This is especially true for those who live outside the US, where ISP charges and call rates can be substantially higher.
I usually have two or three browser windows open at a time, so I always have a fresh page to look at whilst others are loading. If you get a visitor like me the load time won't matter. But like many that make their living online, perhaps yourself included, I am fortunate to have the luxury of a large monitor, most surfers don't. Also, in my experience, few surfers are comfortable jumping between windows in that way. Think about the average user's experience and not your own.
Always keep in mind ...
On the net people want it fast, FAST, FASTER!
Everything on your web page adds to it's download time.
*Everything*. Remember that!
By far the greediest of the byte gobbler's are audio, graphics (especially if animated) and Java applets.
So ask yourself ...
"Do I really need that welcome voice message?" Or the fancy Java, or the cool graphics? In fact - excuse me - I'm going to butt in here and tell it to you straight...
no, you don't!
Not unless you happen to be selling something inextricably linked to one of these items. This might be the case with graphics for a graphic design web site, for example. But even then, my advice... keep it to the bare minimum on your home page.
Get them in the front door first ...
once they're safely inside, then you can show them how beautifully you've decorated your house!
For the graphics you have to have (and we all need some), make sure the file sizes are as small as possible by compressing them to the point that any further reduction would result in distortion. If you don't know anything about this, don't worry. There are a few online services that can do this for you.
Alternatively you can buy a software application to help you with this task. The excellent Adobe Image Ready (you can download both a Mac or PC version) will automatically do this and several other things (like making animated banners) for the graphics you use online.
This latter option may work out cheaper for you in the long term and saves a lot of time, but as always, decide what would be the best for you in your situation.
Cut it out!
Don't put anything on your home page that doesn't have an important reason for being there. You're reading this because you want to make money online, right? So just take a minute (later... not now!) to examine the elements that make up your page and ask yourself for each "Will this help me to make money?" If the answer is "No", then bin it.
Be merciless!
Only give space to things that will increase your bottom line. Bear in mind however that some items can add to your site's success and profitability in indirect ways, depending on your business. For example, a chat room could be used as a means of allowing visitors to interact directly with your staff. This may be with sales or customer support personnel depending on your product and focus.
Personally I don't subscribe to the generally held view that visitors don't like to scroll the page and so it must kept short. In fact, I'm inclined to believe ...
it's a load of rubbish!
People use scroll bars in their word processors and Email programs every day. And I don't care what anyone says - if you find the content sufficiently interesting ...
you'll keep on scrollin' down that page!
I hate sites that spread information over many short pages! I feel like I'm constantly waiting for pages to load. I feel that the site owner is inconsiderate, or trying to get extra banner impressions on my time. I often get fed up and leave.
But - and this is a big but - your homepage is different.
It must load quickly and everything on it adds to it's download time, remember?
For this reason don't make your home page too long. I recommend you stick to between one and one-and-a half screen lengths unless the page is almost entirely text, in which case you can safely increase on this.
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