Knowledge Base
What Online Services Can You Offer?
The basic infrastructure of a website consists of pages with text, graphics, audio, and links to other pages or websites. The entry point is called the homepage. It is the first page users see, and it creates a first and lasting impression about the content of the website. It determines whether the visitor will browse through the succeeding pages or leave and go to the competition. Homepages should be simple, use the right colours, and have well-organised buttons and minimum text.
The next level in a website is the ability to input data into the system - for example, filling out a form, sending an e-mail to the company regarding the product, or sending comments about the product or the site. For this to be possible, you must have a server that is capable of receiving the content and processing it. Other considerations for this aspect of website design include:
- User control and freedom: Users should be able to undo and redo paths they have taken by mistake and et back on track within your site. All pages should allow customers to navigate within the site from any page to any other page.
- Consistency and standards: Users should not have to wonder whether different words or actions mean different things on different pages.
- Recognition rather than recall: Objects and options should be visible, requiring no memorisation or explanation.
- Efficient design: Dialogs should not have information that is either unrelated to the segment or rarely needed.
- Recovery from error: Error messages should be displayed in plain language and indicate the source of the problem and ways to correct it.
- Help desk: The website should have a feature where the user can go for help on activities related to the product, service, how to order etc.
The outcome of the design phase is a balance between designers' innovations and users' expectations. Once a decision has been made on what to include in the website and how to format it, the next step is where to store the pages. If you are a small business and you have limited networking technology, you will have the ISP load the website on its server, as well as update the site and manage the traffic the site generates. The main drawback of this approach is limited control over sensitive data. Because the ISP has many other businesses to manage, there is a chance you own business data may be vulnerable; but if you set up your website on your own in-house server, you need to consider the cost of maintaining, monitoring, and updating the site.