What’s the Use?
by Glenn White
(Note: This is a hyperlinked article. Click on any underlined word or phrase and
be whisked away to the
related website.)
Web Usability
If you’re a church planter, you may not have the time or the interest to delve into the intricacies of web design, but it may help
you to know a few basics. This article will help you to oversee a quality web site that attracts and keeps visitors. So, let’s
assume you are building a web site or already have one up and running. How do you know your site is really useful? How do
you know your site is reaching people?
Honestly, despite web page counters, you can’t really know for sure. But you
can implement a few strategies to improve your web site’s readability, visibility, and usability on the Web. There are detailed
studies of web design appropriately called web usability. The acknowledged guru of web usability is Jakob Nielsen of Sun Microsystems, and he has some interesting observations.
Scanners versus Readers
One of the things Jakob Nielsen discovered is people don’t read on the web, they scan. Contrary to popular belief, this is not because of short
attention spans. It’s due to the flicker rate of computer monitors causing the reader to read 25% slower than when reading a
print publication. This means that writing for the web needs to be different than writing for print.
How to Write for the Web
Because of the tendency for readers to scan text on the web, writing for the web means short paragraphs, a lot of subheads,
bulleted lists, articles shorter than 500 words, and active verbs. The web and print are two different mediums. Simply
transferring print articles into web articles does not effectively reach readers on the
web. Keep it short and sweet and your
web text will have readability.
The Web as an Active Medium
The big mistake you can make when thinking about a web site is that it’s a passive medium like television or print publications.
The web is active. In fact, it’s interactive. Always keep that in mind with your web site. You’ll need to make a minor paradigm
shift with the web. Corporate communication is challenged to change because of the
web. A concept called The Cluetrain Manifesto is a must read for any pastor in the
postmodern culture. Actually, Cluetrain contains many principles found in most churches, if not in practice at least in theory.
The key words for an effective web site are dialogue and interactivity.
The Big Picture
The big picture, actually, is having small pictures and graphics. A
recent study says you lose a web surfer if your web page takes longer than twenty seconds to load. And some usability folks
say less than ten seconds.
Humongous portraits of the Last Supper take too long to load and you’ll lose people. Avoid flash
animation—it only impresses
other web designers but irritates readers. Also, forgo the twirling crosses, leaping lambs, and pulsating rainbows. These
distract your guests, too. And it’s best to avoid textured or colored backgrounds with butterflies, eagles, or your favorite
photo. The ideal background for readability and usability is plain old white.
These are a few simple guidelines often
overlooked on many web sites. Use them to build an excellent church plant web site that effectively reaches your community
and the world on the web.
Next: Gotta Serve Who?
Copyright 2001 © Glenn White.
Contact the author for
permission to reproduce this article for commercial purposes.
______________________ Also see:
| 
