A good website depends on its purpose, but should be useful, easy to navigate, orderly, and achieve its purpose. It should have credible and valuable information, accessibility and usability, simplicity in design, a memorable domain name, and a specific focus.
The definition of what makes a good website depends in part on its purpose. A personal page, a company site and a school site must satisfy very different characteristics to be considered of quality. There is, however, basic agreement on what constitutes quality in website design. Regardless of its purpose, a site should be useful, easy to navigate, orderly, easy to find and achieve its purpose.
Credible and valuable information. Whatever the purpose of the site, the information it contains should be useful to visitors. If the material is outdated, poorly edited, or incomplete, readers will feel cheated and will most likely seek out an alternative source of information the next time they read on the subject. Citing sources when appropriate is another thing that differentiates a good site from a bad one. While everyone is entitled to their opinion, giving credit where it’s due is a great way to boost a site’s respectability.
Accessibility and usability. It doesn’t matter how useful the information on a website is if readers have a hard time finding it. Disorganized pages, too many links, articles that go nowhere, and so many other details can complicate the use of a website and turn off the reader.
Design. Simplicity is the key to a good website. Lots of graphics can frustrate a player with a slow internet connection. Music, animation, and color can be powerful tools when used appropriately, but they can also be a sign of an amateur website. Floating cursors and cute cartoon characters are out of place on a company page, for example.
Domain name. Websites that people return to often have names that people can remember by heart. A complicated or plainly hosted domain name on a free server usually doesn’t convey the image of professionalism.
Scope. Whatever the purpose of a site, a good website fulfills it. If an owner knows what he wants his website to achieve, half of the goal is already achieved. Unfortunately, many websites are too broad and lack a specific focus. This can confuse readers and often leads to a disorganized look that doesn’t inspire confidence.
An effective website doesn’t have to be expensive to build or too idiosyncratic. Indeed, it is the simpler page that sometimes gets the message across faster and more effectively.
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