Case Study: Mayo Medical Laboratories

Last summer, CWS worked with Mayo Medical Laboratories to redevelop the structure of MayoMedicalLaboratories.com, and we have continued to support the expansion of its offerings. We put a lot of effort into the architecture of this site's codebase, and recent statistics have shown that these efforts are paying off.

Overall traffic to the site has doubled, but even more interesting is a six-fold increase in traffic specifically referred by search engines over an eight-month period. More recently, we've worked to develop a system for public access to the catalog of medical tests offered by MML, and this tool is already drawing nearly half of the site's traffic.

Here are a few of the strategies employed to achieve these measurable results:

• Good separation of content and style. Most people know that a Web page is driven by some underlying code that's not usually displayed. But what's not always understood is that not all code serves the same function. Of course the actual text you see on a page is included, but a good portion of the code that's loaded into your Web browser is about style -- the way a page looks. When a search engine looks at the page, it doesn't care about style; content is king. In modern Web design, it's possible to almost completely separate style code from written content, but this practice isn't always followed well. When it is, the results can be dramatic. In addition to giving search engines a clearer picture of content, code separation can significantly reduce the time required to load pages and make changes far easier to implement. It also opens the possibility of repurposing content for alternative devices, like mobile or print versions, without duplicating the content.
• Appropriate use of structure. The third type of code that makes up a Web page represents its structure. Many types of structure can end up yielding the same visual result. Looking at a building from the outside, you might not know if its studs were made of wood, steel, or Styrofoam. But that doesn't make all three building materials equally sound. The same is true of Web pages; the underlying structure can have a big impact on accessibility and maintainability. It's also particularly helpful for allowing search engines to assign context to words. For example, human beings rely on visual cues like text size and color to identify headings and other important words on a page. Search engines (not to mention visually impaired human beings) can't do this, so they rely on the document's structure to determine what's important.
• Internationalization. When websites aim to attract a global audience, it's important to correctly encode and structure multilingual content. This improves performance with international search engines and also ensures that pages display consistently across a diverse range of platforms and browsers.

CWS believes in producing Web sites and applications that are focused on meeting business objectives and producing measurable results. Contact us for a risk-free assessment.

The Value of Clear Writing

Many people think of design in purely visual terms. This kind of thinking can influence everything from the kind of car we buy to the food we eat. We're attracted by things that look good, and style is, in fact, an important component of good design. But it's not the whole picture.

A great-looking car with critical safety issues would not be well designed. Nor would an innovative packaging system that didn't keep food fresh. Good design not only means that something looks good, but that it performs well, that it's efficient and that it's reliable.

I have an ice cream scoop that fits this description perfectly. Designed by Michael Graves, it's heavy and solid, making perfectly round scoops even when the dessert is solidly frozen, and its polished surface never sticks. It's also ergonomic and durable -- a simple product that does its job well. Nothing complicated.

When it comes to the Web, one aspect of good design that's often overlooked is writing. And yet the content of your site is what will ultimately make it succeed or fail as a business tool. Visual presentation is important -- to establish credibility, as an expression of your brand, and to give appropriate structure to your content -- but the content itself is fundamental.

Unfortunately, many people write website content as an afterthought. It doesn't have to be complicated -- indeed, it shouldn't be, as people read more slowly on screen than on paper -- but it ought to be thoughtfully considered as a core component of design.

In general, writing for the Web should be:

• Clear and brief. People who use the Web a lot get in the habit of moving quickly and don't like to read lengthy texts (with a few exceptions). Help them learn what they need to know with minimal effort.
• Correct. English isn't everyone's field of expertise, but we all know someone who's good at it. Have your content proofread, because errors will both undermine your credibility as a professional and lengthen the time required to understand the material.
• Well organized. Judicious use of headings, bold text and lists makes it easier for both humans and search engines to capture the essential points on a page.
• User-centric. Address the questions that your visitors are asking, rather than just telling them what you want them to hear. Use the kind of language they use, not industry jargon (unless your audience is likely to be using such niche terms when searching).

When you undertake a website project, consider the total package. Don't hire anyone who is just an artist, a programmer, or a businessperson. It takes attention to detail in every area to make a product that's truly well designed, whether the end result is as simple as an ice cream scoop or as complex as a building.

How to Implement a Site Search

Wouldn't it be nice for people to search your entire site with minimal effort on your end? You might be thinking this would require a substantial amount of time or money, or maybe even both. I assure you this is not the case. Maybe you already have a search feature for your site, but you are unhappy with the results that come up. Whatever the case may be, if you are looking for a reliable search tool I would suggest you check out Google Custom Search.

Google Custom Search is...

1. Easy to add to your site
2. Customizable for advanced users
3. Free

Rather than me boring you by telling you how it works, try it out for yourself by using this blog's custom search feature (in the right column towards top).



You can implement a search tool just like this on your own site without writing a single line of code. Google will generate it all for you, and you can get set up in just a couple of minutes. If you need help adding search or other tools to your site, just drop us a line at support (at) cws (dot) net.

Walking a Mile in Someone Else's Shoes

One of the values we try to live by at CWS is user-centric design. That is, we believe that websites and Web-based applications are most effective when they're designed to make the tasks performed by end users as easy as possible. This may sound obvious, but in reality it's much easier said than done.

People tend to assume that others basically think like themselves, and it's very difficult to overcome that feeling. In the same way that a filmmaker might have a hard time watching a movie without analyzing the lighting and camera angles that the rest of us take for granted, the different groups of people using a site will come with different sets of assumptions.

This can be a trap both for the people who create websites and those who own the content. Programmers can think of a site in terms of infrastructure, or let technology drive design in place of experience. Business owners or other stakeholders may be more concerned about what they want to say than what the end user wants to know. Thinking about a site solely from our own perspective can handicap a great idea.

This principle applies both to design in general, content writing (the most overlooked component of good design) and to search engine optimization. There may be a big difference between the search terms that a business owner thinks are applicable to his website and those that his customers actually use. It doesn't do any good if a site performs well for searches on "mechanical contractor" but consumers are only looking for "heating repair." In the same way, a site that gives a passionate description of product benefits but never answers questions about price may drive away people who are doing research to build a shortlist of potential vendors.

There are many formal processes and tools to help you put yourself in a user's shoes (personas and use cases, for example), and we can help you walk through these, but the best way to start is simply talking to the people who will use the site or application being designed. Find out what people love and hate about the tools they use now.

Customer loyalty comes from giving people what they want. As Zig Ziglar has famously said, "You will get all you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want."

End of the year maintenance

It's the end of the year, and do you know where your web site is? Is some of your content outdated, or worse, not showing up at all? Making an annual assessment of your site is a great idea, and here are a few suggestions on what to look for.

1. Is your "About Us" page updated?
Have you been in business for 8 years for the last 3 years? Check on how current this page is. Update any time sensitive items and any services you may or may no longer provide.

2. Are your contact forms working properly?
Make sure that when a customer wants to contact you, messages get to the correct person. Be sure that a form, whose recipient may not always be obvious, is sending messages to your current sales person and not the one who left six months ago.

3. If you have other email addresses or contact information on your web site, are they correct?
Review all your published contact information. Nothing can turn a potential customer away faster than not being able to contact you.

4. Do all your links work -- both within your site and especially those that link off site?
When you're linking to content that you don't control, it's critical to review those links regularly to make sure they're still valid. Check all links, even the ones within your site, to make sure that your customers are getting to the correct place. There is a free online tool to check them here.

5. Check your WHOIS record.
This record is used by your registrar to contact you in case your domain (web site address) is about to expire, or for other important notices. Check yours at Network Solutions.

6. Do an overall review of your web site.
Check photos and see if they're still current and representative of your business. Are any graphics dated? Should you update any content? Do your pages load fast enough or are they slow?

This sort of review should be done yearly at a minimum. Some items can be checked quickly, and others may take some time, depending on the scale of your site. But in the long run, the advantages of a well-maintained website make it worth your time and effort.