what makes a good website

eMarketing: What Makes a good website?

an eMarketing Workshop designed for the Cultural World

Today’s Workshop consists of…

• Introduction to the World Wide Web

• Where to Start with Website Development

• Website Design with Impact

• Getting Seen: Search Engine Optimisation

•Effective Online Tools

•eMarketing Strategy

This workshop is Powered by GANE

A Global Village

What is the Internet?

The world wide interconnection of individual networks operated by governments, industry, academia and private parties.

Date Number of Users % of World Population

December 1995 16 million 0.4%

March 2000 304 million 5.0%

December 2005 888 million 13.9%

December 2008 1,574 million 23.5%

December 2009 1,802 million 26.6%

September 2010 1,971 million 28.8%

Who is using the internet?

• 82.5% of the UK population is online (June 2010).

• 60% access the internet everyday.

• Usage influenced by age, location, marital status and education.

• 60% of people 65yrs+ never access the internet.

• 1% of 16 to 24 yrs have never accessed the internet.

• 97% of adults educated to degree level access the internet.

• 45% without formal qualifications access the internet.

• Adults in Scotland are the biggest users of the internet (10.5 hours per week – Ofcom, may 2010).

Source: New Media Trend Watch

Interactive

Collaborative

Frequently updated

User controlled

Passive

Static

Rarely Updated

Webmaster controlled

Latest developments

Using the Web in the ArtsA Benchmark for Visitor Statistics – A starting Point

• 15-25% of web visitors will return within a month.

• Repeat web visits accounts for 55-77% of all visits.

• Visit approx. 3 to 6 pages and stay for 2 to 6 minutes.

• Each unique visitor will view less then 20 pages in a month.

• Less then 2% will convert to ‘Live Visitors’ – i.e. make an online booking –

debatable.

• Less then 2% will sign up for further communication.

Arts Marketing Association, 2003.

Getting Started: Website Development

Thinking Caps On…Thinking Caps On…

• How do you envisage your website?

• What do you hope to achieve with your website?

• Who do you want to visit your website?

In other words what are your…

VISION, AIMS, & AUDIENCE

Vision

What do you want your visitors to think of you? What do you want your visitors to think of you?

What is the lasting impression you want to leave with What is the lasting impression you want to leave with your visitors?your visitors?

What are the long-term aspirations of your website? What are the long-term aspirations of your website?

Conveyed through good website development & design

Aims

What is it you want your visitors to do on your What is it you want your visitors to do on your website? website?

What do you want to achieve through your website? What do you want to achieve through your website?

Conveyed through good website design

Audiences

Who are you wanting to attract to your website? Who are you wanting to attract to your website?

Why should they visit your website? Why should they visit your website?

Where are they coming from? Where are they coming from?

Conveyed through good website

promotion & use of analytics

Exercise One

Workbook: ‘Vision, Aims & Audiences’

What makes a good website?

Brand Key elements

Little touches

Ease

Capture and communicate the value and benefit your providing visitors.

Make an immediate connection when visitors enter your site.

Be consistent with your overall brand and communications.

Create a beautiful, professional and highly- functional experience.

Your Brand needs to…

What elements define your website?

• Calendar of exhibitions, events, activities

• Photo galleries

• Blogs

• News

• Social media content

The key elements of your website carry its success.

The key elements…

• The Navigation Structure

• Font Selection

• Creative Copy

• Image selection and editing

• Icons

The little touches that have high impact.

What separates your website from everyone else’s?

The little touches…

User Ease

Organised and intuitive navigation structure.

Multiple ways to access one piece of information.

Making it easy for your visitors and for yourself.

Manageability

A Content Management System

Ability to make changes and updates without the need of an IT expert.

Is it Easy…

What do you want your website say about you?

Exercise two

Workbook: ‘Your Website Now’

What online elements work really well for your web visitors?

What would you change about your website now?

Exercise two

What first impression will your website make?

Do You Need a Web Developer?

Arguments for the DIY approach:

• Lower costs • Direct control of the look and feel• Gain knowledge to make change• CMS takes the sting out of HTML coding• A learning opportunity

Do You Need a Web Developer?

Arguments against the DIY approach:

• There are limitations • There is more to web design then HTML.

Working with Web Developers

• Try not to rush the process

• Insist on seeing work in progress

• If in doubt test

• Don’t ask for multiple designs

• Don’t show a design around without explanation

• Do they know what you want to achieve

• Define your target audience clearly

• Don’t overwork the design

• Work as an ongoing partnership • Focus on problems not solutions

Content management systems

What is a content management system?

CMS is a tool that enables a variety of technical and non-technical staff to create, edit, manage and finally publish a variety of content, whilst being constrained by a centralised

set of rules, processes and workflows that ensure coherent,

validated electronic content.

Benefits of Using a CMS

• You don’t need to understand or know any HTML coding.

• Maintenance is decentralised.

• Site structure and design can be easily changed.

• Navigation is automatically generated.

• You can configure access and restrictions.

• Access to dynamic content.• You have control.

http://www.guggenheim.org/

It takes less then 10 Seconds to grab peoples attention

Less if your website takes 4 seconds to download

Next Step: Effective Website Design

AIDAs Attention

Interest

Desire

Action

satisfaction

Attention

Be HonestRelevantTasteful Clear

Make a statementMake an offeringAsk a questionTell them something

Interest

Why should I

stay?

Desire

Appeal to

personal needs

and wants

Action

Book for an Event

Sign up for a Newsletter

Buy a product

Recommend to a friend

Puts audiences at the heart of what you do

A tangible experience

Providing relevance

Remaining true to your word - both in the online and offline world

SAtisfaction

Segment and Target

Disseminate Information

Sign up to Mailing List

A Group visit

What do your visitors want?

International Tourists

Local Residents

Secondary Schools

What’s On, Directions, Local Information

Upcoming events, Local news, Offers

Day Trips, Workshops, Tours, Educational

Value

Exercise three

Workbook: ‘Matching Audiences and Offerings’

Essential elements for top websites

Good Visual Design

Thoughtful Interface

Primary Navigation

Repeat Navigation

Meaningful Content

A solid ‘About’ page

Contact Information

Search Function

Sign-up/ Subscribe button

Sitemap

Web optimised Images

Statistics, Tracking and Analytics

• Establish trust

• Make life better in some way

• Offer a clean, simple and easy experience

• Avoid making the user think unnecessarily

• Look professional

• Clearly show your visitors how to accomplish their goals

• Help visitors find what they need

• And; Then ask them to take an action.

Great Website Rules

Back in 15 Minutes

Be Seen: Search Engine Optimisation Search Engine Optimisation

• Do people know who you are well enough to search for you?

• Do Search Engines know you well enough to recommend you?

• What have you done to get noticed?

“If I built it, they will come”

So What is Search Engine Optimisation?

The process of increasing and improving the volume and quality of traffic to your website

through natural or organic searches.

A simple activity of ensuring your website can be found in Search Engines when people use words

and phrases relevant to what your site is offering.

Search Engine Spiders…

CONTENT

META TAGS

HEADINGS

IMAGES

LINKS

SITEMAPS

TITLE TAGS

keywords

1.Decide on your word mapping tool

2.Deciding on the right words to use

3.Grouping your keywords

1. Decide on your word mapping tool

http://adwords.google.com

2. Deciding on the right words to use

3. Grouping Your Keywords

Theatre

Scotland

Performing Arts

Perth and Kinross

Holidays in Scotland

Things to do in Scotland

Scottish Tourism

Scottish B&B’s

Comedy

Comedy Show

Best comedy

2011 Comedy Shows

What’s On

Gallery

Shop

Where to eat

Events

Exercise four

Workbook: ‘What are my Keywords?’

SEO techniques all great websites should use

Title Tags

meta Tags - Description

meta Tags - keywords

Proper use of heading tags

Alt attributes on images

Title Attributes on links

XML Sitemap

http://www.xml-sitemaps.com/

relevant content

Link Building

Build your links

Extras: Effective Online Tools

• Communicate

• Build relationships

• Streamline

• Manage

• Understand

Email campaigns

90% of people sent or received an Email. 75% searched for information on goods and services.

51% read or downloaded online news, newspapers or magazines

45% listened to web radio or watched web television

43% posted messages to chat sites, social networking and blogs

40% played or downloaded games, images, film or music

38% uploaded self created content to a website to be shared

32% looked for information on learning, education and training

21% sold goods or services over the internet

12% donated to charities online.

Office For National Statistics, Statistical Bulletin: Internet Access 2010

• Grow and expand your organisation.

• Communicate important news.

• Keeps you on the minds of potential audiences.

• Helps people get to know you in a light and informal way.

• Helps start conversations with your target audience.

Benefits of Email Campaigns

Event Booking Systems

Customer Relationship Management

CRM is a way of learning more about youraudiences, or customers, needs andbehaviours in order to develop strongerrelationships with them.

Freshbooks

Google alerts

Pulling your strategy together

• What eMarketing tactics will you use

• How will you implement these tactics

• What will these tactics communicate

• Which of your target groups are these tactics designed for

• How often will these tactics take place

• Who will manage these tactics

• How will these tactics support one another

• What will your response time be to comments/ emails

Website

eNewslettersMonthly news

One-off events/news

Social MediaFacebook, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, Blog

SEOKeywords, Page Tiles, Site Maps, Links

Links Galleries, Museums, Local Shops, B&Bs

Web DesignCall to ActionPhotosVisitor Comments

Analytics Monthly review – Google, Facebook, eNewsletter

Exercise five

Worksheet: ‘eMarketing Strategy’