Developing Content for Your Website
Developing the content for your website can be an unwelcome task, but let's face it, it is likely the most important part of your site. The most visually pleasing website is only useful to the degree that it gives site users what they want. If you are the site owner, then you also want them to be well served. This article offers a few simple steps to help you decide what your website needs to say.
Remember, there is no specific amount of written content that is the right amount. You don't need to (in fact should not) write a lot if you don't have that much that needs to be said. On the other hand, everything that needs to be said should be included. Refer to the quotation to the left.
(I will use a fictional website for a Rock 'n Roll band to illustrate the steps described below.)
1) List goals of the site ownership
If you are going to foot the bill for a website, you probably have something that you want it to achieve for yourself or your organization. Your needs, as well as those of your users, both have to be met, or else the website fails to do its job fully. Write down a complete list of the general goals of the site ownership. If you are in business an obvious goal might be to generate revenue. Other goals might be to generate client contacts or provide useful information. Don't forget the general type of image the site ownership would like to portray of itself.
Example:
- Provide information
- Introduce the band to new users
- Support the fan base
- Portray a '60s big-concert image
(Specific ways to fulfill these goals will be described in later steps. However, this is only a planning process and there are no right or wrong answers. Don't be distracted by the process itself.)
2) List potential site users and their possible goals
Write down all the types of users who might come to your site. For each type, write down what they might want to get from your site.
Example:
- Fans
- Current news of the band
- Concert schedule
- Music samples
- Where to purchase music
- Pictures
- Bios
- History
- Reporters
- News release
- History
- Pictures
- Bio
- Booking Agents
- Business contact information
- Concert schedule
3) Write
Yes, it's come to this. Write distinct sections of text to satisfy all information needs listed above. (Refer to my article, “Writing for the Web”.) Define or select pictures needed to help convey your message.
One of my services is to write site content, if you prefer. Even so, the previous steps are still necessary to define what the content needs to be.
4) Review
Review ownership goals and users goals to make sure they are all covered. Rework as necessary.
5) Remove
Remove all content or images that do not directly satisfy some goal already listed. The reason for this step is to get rid of all extraneous site content. If the content supports no specific goal, take it out.
If you decide that some item of content must be included, but no specific goal is listed to justify it, then you are probably missing a goal from the list and should include it where necessary. It is okay to rework the goals if they are found to be incomplete.
Example:
- Ownership Goal — Satisfy egos of the performers.
- Content — Include a picture of the singer's cat.
Finally, website design
The steps described above are used to define and help create the content of the site. The next step, knowing all goals to be achieved and having all site content in hand, is to develop the structure and graphic design of the website itself, and that is normally the job of a web design expert. The structure of the web site should provide easy access to the content, and the graphic design should support the presentation of the content.
For more information, or if you have any questions or comments, please contact me.
- 404-378-9493
- Steve at simplyFULL.com