Building a Lean, Mean, Quick, Web Machine!

Building a website can be a time consuming process. If you use the wrong kind of assets in building your site, it will become a exercise in patience and anger management. Here is a few simple tips to keep that site light on its feet, easy to build, troubleshoot, and maintain.


Small pages = Fast pages

The art of building a site that loads quickly and is quick to transition is a tricky one. no matter a persons connection speed there is always content to download. How frustrating is it when you go to a page you want to view only to have to wait sometimes, what seems like forever, for content to load. We have all been there. (modem era anyone?) Do your viewers a favor, keep those pages small no more than a couple hundred kb. (yes you can still have images and content and keep it that small)

Catch common usability problems before user testing.

There is a saying I always liked: "Don't try to say again what has already been said better," With that on my mind, I present to you the following link. http://userium.com/ This a excellent checklist/tool in your web development arsenal that allows you to catch common usability problems before user testing. Enjoy, and happy coding.

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Choosing the Best Layout for Your Website

You have your domain name and your hosting, but now it's time to get your actual site up and running. Which layout do you choose? There's hundreds if not thousands of layouts to choose from. Does it matter which one you choose? Of course it does.

There are one column, two column, three column websites, and bunches of variations of particular layouts. The simpler your site is, the easier it will be for your consumers to use it. Don't put too much information on the homepage. Homepage space should belong to the absolute most important information on your website.

Make Your Website the Right Way…and Keep People Coming Back!

People depend on the web today for a fast, simple way to access the most current information on any topic. If a site is designed poorly, or doesn’t contain good information, people will stop coming and you’ll lose your audience. Audience is very important in AYSO because if we lose parents, we lose players. Here are some points to keep in mind when working on your website to ensure that it’s the best it can be:

KISS – Keep It Simple Stupid

This is a mantra used throughout user design. No matter how simple YOU think it is, there are people out there who won’t think it’s so easy to use. Test your designs before implementing them by choosing a few (non-tech) people to test it out. Gather their feedback and design it to fit their needs and not yours. Here are some ways to keep it simple:

• Create a clear visual hierarchy on each page
• Take advantage of conventions
• Break pages into clearly defined areas
• Make links obvious
• Minimize distracting elements
• Use common sense

Keep It Focused and Purposeful

Users have a reason to visit a website and it’s usually to find specific information. Anything that gets in the way of that purpose is counterproductive. Eliminate “landing pages”, including introductory animations/slideshows. People don’t want to sit and wait for something to load just to click through it anyway. Let them get in, get their information and get out. Keep your content up to date. Parents will not continue to visit a website to read the same information as their last visit. That doesn’t help the parents stay informed. Know the purpose of your website and don’t stray away from it.

The Importance of Good Website Navigation

Website users, especially busy soccer parents, don’t usually have the time to sit and search all over a website to find what they are looking for. You can help keep your visitors on your website with clean, concise and organized site navigation.

There are two common spots for website navigation: the top of the website (horizontally across) or the left side (in a vertical list). These are the two places that most people will look for a list of links to navigate your website. Some websites will also offer a complete list of links at the bottom of each page. People are trained to go there for links as well (but usually as a last resort).

When designing navigation for your website, keep in mind the “Three Click Rule.” A user will click on an average of three links before they leave the website. Try not to bury your links so deep that you have to click more than three times to get to them. You want to get your user to the content they desire as quickly as possible. Note that long lists of links are just as cumbersome as hiding them ten layers deep. Organization is key when creating site navigation.