Does Your Web Site Need A Tune Up?
Your web site may contain flaws or glitches that are driving
your visitors away! Such a thought is enough to give the most
laid back webmaster a migraine. How can you uncover and fix any
problem areas that may be lurking in the dark recesses of your
site? Relax gentle readers, there is a simple answer.
All you have to do is follow a few basic guidelines that all web
sites should adhere to and you can be assured that your site is
in tip-top shape. It's not unlike giving your automobile a
little tuneup.
1 - Slow Loading Pages
Nothing drives a visitor away faster than having to wait around
for a web page to load. Most experts will tell you that 8
seconds is the maximum load time for your pages, and anything
slower needs some attention. But, this doesn't take into account
the visitor's modem speed. Here are the results from a load time
check I had conducted recently on the first page of one of my
sites.
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This diagnostic checks how fast your page loads up under 6
common modem speeds.
Connect Rate Connect Time -------------- --------------- 14.4K
10.12 seconds 28.8K 6.05 seconds 33.6K 5.34 seconds 56K 4.41
seconds ISDN 128K 2.04 seconds T1 1.44Mpbs 1.00 seconds
LOAD TIME CHECK.......................EXCELLENT
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I have included these results so you can see the difference in
load time for various modem speeds and use it as a guide instead
of the 8 second benchmark you are often given. Please note that
the page tested has very few graphics. A page with more graphics
will load slower, but may still load in an acceptable time. Slow
load time is usually caused by either too many graphics or by
graphics that are too "fat." You can have those "fat" graphics
optimized by an experienced HTML programmer. If your problem is
too many graphics, you need to eliminate a few.
2 - Typos and Spelling
Typos and misspelled words can severely undermine an otherwise
great site. Check and recheck every page for these errors.
3 - Navigation
Broken or missing links are all too common on many sites I
visit. So, double-check all your links and make sure they are
functioning properly. Those 404 messages are a big-time turnoff,
plus it means part of your site is inaccessible.
If you have a lot of links on a page, arrange them in neat rows
with uniform spacing between each.
It is critical to have all links clearly identified.
4 - Design
Your color choices are a matter of personal taste. But try to
avoid using too many colors. This can give your site a
carnival-like effect that leaves your visitors tired and dizzy.
As a general rule you shouldn't use more than four colors.
Too many different fonts on a page can also have a negative
effect on your design. When I look at a page that somehow just
doesn't look quite right, but I can't put my finger on the
problem, it usually turns out to be the font(s).
Animation is great, but too much movement is distracting. Don't
load your pages with too many banners. One or two at the top or
bottom should be the limit.
This concludes your web site's tune up. These guidelines are by
no means an exhaustive list of all the problems and errors that
can plague a web site. But, it is an effective checklist of the
more common flaws, and it will serve to greatly improve the
performance of any web site.