Web Design Articles - Critical Issues for Web Site Development

Critical Issues for Web Site Development

Most companies recognize that in today's competitive business environment, a site on the World Wide Web can be a valuable way to boost sales, enhance customer service, and market to prospective customers. But not every company that establishes a presence on the Web is equally successful in achieving these  objectives. The reason: all Web sites are not developed to the same high standard in so far as aesthetics, navigability, interactivity, and performance are concerned.

In order to ensure that a Web site will meet business goals, it must be carefully planned and professionally developed. Below are several issues that must be considered in this endeavor.

1. Will the site and all of its contents appear the same on all end-user's screens?

In many cases, the tools used by Web site developers restrict viewing of a web site to specific browsers. In other cases, depending on the development tools utilized, some browsers may actually alter the intended appearance of pages.

To prevent this situation from occurring, and to ensure that a site can be viewed, as developed, regardless of the browser used to access the site, HTML programming needs to be fine tuned by a skilled and  experienced developer. In addition, once completed, sites should be visited from a range of browsers to ensure a consistent appearance.

2. From the end-user's perspective, how long does it take for the page to appear?

Depending on the connection to the Web, sites that contain only text often download virtually instantaneously. However, lag times are common for sites that contain graphics.

To minimize downloading intervals, be sure that each individual graphic occupies no more than 20-25 kilobytes; larger graphics files simply take too long to download and try the end-user's patience.

Be aware, that most image processing packages do not provide the high degree of compression required to optimize this element of performance. Some off-the-shelf compression packages, for example, require about 80 kilobytes for a photo. An experienced programmer, by comparison, should be able to restrict the same photo to just 20-25 kilobytes.

3. Is the site aesthetically pleasing?

While a subjective issue, most people would agree that arranging a page to incorporate both text and graphics adds interest to its appearance. Similarly, varying the margins for text, or perhaps flowing text around graphics, also tends to make pages easier to read and more pleasing to look at.

Yet text prepared with standard HTML (the common Web site programming language) always appears justified left. Faced with this dilemma, some developers utilize specific "tags" associated with the browser they are working with to achieve the look required. Unfortunately, with this approach the page may not always appear consistently when accessed with browsers other than the one used for development.

To avoid this problem, some companies decide to compromise their original layouts to accommodate the limitations of the developer. But by allowing an experienced programmer to develop the site, both aesthetics and access issues can be addressed; text and graphics can be placed in the precise positions demanded by the aesthetics requirements of the site, and the page can be viewed consistently with any browser. Remember: the creativity of a Web site should never be limited by a developer's skills.

4. Can the site be logically and easily navigated?

Navigation, or how an end-user gets from one page in a site to another, is another key issue. All too often a site is not logically linked, leaving end-users with no way to get to another page of interest to them, or even of finding out if there is another page to go to. Another problem at some sites is that icons are presented to expedite navigation, but no explanation is given to describe the icons or where they will take the end-user.

To avoid these shortcomings, be sure that every page in a site has clearly marked navigation bars (that include captions) to make it easy for an end-user to automatically link to an appropriate next page. Always consider how the site will appear to an uninitiated end-user, and strive to make the site elegantly simple to navigate, no matter how complex, sophisticated, or lengthy. In reaching this objective rely on the  developer: they should provide the insight needed based on their experiences with other similar sites.

5. Can the site be as interactive as you want it to be?

There are two issues associated with Web site interactivity, either of which may require a great deal of programming in any of a variety of computer languages and databases. The first of these is the ability of the company sponsoring the site to easily and directly update their own site through the use of templates created by the developer. The second interactivity issue involves the ability of the end-users of the site to complete transactions and interact with the system itself in other ways such as obtaining tailored information from databases associated with the site.

In a banking scenario, for example, a Web site may allow end-users to make a selection from a variety of investment products described in a number of site pages. These pages may be updated by the bank as new products are released.

After making their investment selections, the end-user could click on a navigation bar to have the rate of return calculated for the investment mix, and based on the results, make changes to the mix to optimize the projected return. Finally, the customer may be allowed to purchase the investments directly with funds in their account.

6. Can user-tracking enhance service levels?

To enhance service levels, consider adding a user tracking feature. With this capability, for example, end-users can use a single order form to make selections from a broad list of product choices described on a large number of pages. The alternative, ordering each item separately, from each page, is far too cumbersome.

7. Has the site been developed for an appropriate platform?

In addition to the Web site program itself, developing the program so that it can run on an appropriate platform will have a major impact on site performance. In general, the faster the platform, the faster the response time of the site.

But companies must determine if the cost of a fast platform is warranted: if a two-second response time is acceptable, for example, why incur the high costs of a solution that cuts response down to milliseconds? Of course, speed is not the only issue. Site complexity and interactivity must be considered as well.

To resolve these performance issues requires the services of a developer with experience in programming on a wide variety of platforms. The developer should know if a PC or Macintosh platform will provide the performance expected for the specific application, or if a DEC Alpha, or SUN workstation may offer a more acceptable price/performance ratio.

8. Does the site provide a seamless growth path?

Growth path is an important consideration with new Web sites because it is difficult to determine the number of future users, or the variety of future applications the site will support. As a result, it is essential that all sites be programmed with the ability to be modularly expanded as usage increases and as needs change. In this way, early investments in the site can be protected, even as the site is expanded and enhanced.

9. Is adequate security provided?

Sites where access security is a critical concern should be developed to run on secure servers. But in addition, at the programming level, password-based routing features may be added to the site to restrict access. Passwords, for example, may be required to allow customers access to their bank account histories.

In short, the most critical issue to consider when developing a Web site is the developer. Be sure that individual not only has extensive Web development experience, but is also well-experienced with a wide variety of conventional programming languages, databases, and platforms. This experience will be essential to ensuring that your Web site will meet both immediate and evolving business needs.