Better Websites for Writing

Today is "back to" time. Back to school. Back to work. Back to business. Time to tackle that project you've put off: your website. Whether it is starting a new one, fixing a broken one, or revamping a site you've had for a while, now is the time! Writers' websites can have several purposes, but three overall goals always apply to visitors. A website must:

1. attract
2. retain
3. return
   

Bringing viewers to a site is usually the function of the major search engines: Yahoo! and Google. Most site visitors arrive from clicking on a link in the returns of a web search. Good writing will keep them engaged in scanning your site, then maybe reading, buying or otherwise participating in what's offered. Enticing people to return to your site is mainly a function of how easy it was for them to find what they wanted, whether it was interaction, information, a product, or something else you've offered.

Attaining those goals requires coordinating many aspects of website design and development. Some are clearly visible, like the layout, colors, decorations and navigation signals. Others are more subtle, such as the logical structure of the information on the web pages and how they are linked together throughout the site. Many of the critical components, however, are hidden from view, but evident by analysis of the entire project. Some of these include:

highly targeted copy
interactive features
optimized meta tags
current practices
high level back links
critical listings
easy ordering/sales
goal-directed content
keywords placements

Future posts will consider each of these components in more detail. Recent posts on purposes of websites are Against Author Websites and Too Soon for Author Websites?