Purpose/Audience
Tone/Message
Layout/Design
Site Storyboard
Templates
Great Content
Great Graphics
Multimedia
Universal Design
Quality Control
Reach the World
WebDesign Clinic #5b:
Creating Special-Use Pages
We've created a template for our basic pages (Clinic#5a); now we'll plan for some 'special-use pages' like guestbooks, interactive forms, resource pages of links, order or contact pages, etc. And don't forget the all-important Home Page. Although these won't exactly follow the template you've set for information pages, they should still carry through the 'look and feel' of the whole site.
Creating Special-Use Pages
We've created a template for our basic pages (Clinic#5a); now we'll plan for some 'special-use pages' like guestbooks, interactive forms, resource pages of links, order or contact pages, etc. And don't forget the all-important Home Page. Although these won't exactly follow the template you've set for information pages, they should still carry through the 'look and feel' of the whole site.
No Place Like Home:Your home page and/or splash page, like a front door or store front, should be user friendly and inviting.
- Splash pages, like that on this site or our Psych/Consult Systems site, introduce and entice on a very short intro. page; a more detailed introduction and menu follow on a second home page.
- Home pages provide a more detailed, but still short, introduction to the site, and include a navigation menu to lead the user through the site.
- Remember to hook the user early with the answer to their question, "What's in it for me?"
- Use the home page also to highlight news and announcements.
- And provide a prominent mail-to capability right up front.
Links Pages: These provide just links to other resources rather than original content. Group the links by subtopics with a menu or map of segments and navigational aids in each segment to get back to the top and menu. Interactive pages: These are pages which allow the user to send information back to you, including inquiries, comments, and orders (forms pages), or to interact with you, the site, and with other users (for instance, bulletin boards, chats, polls, etc.) These usually require special scripts, though they are easy to code; contact your web host for more information about using "cgi scripts".With forms, the important thing to remember here is KISS--Keep it Simple, Sweetie. And EASY. Make the form easy to fill out, and your response rate will increase. Look at other forms you find on the Web to see what works for you. You can check out the MoonLake CyberSmiths Inquiry Form for some ideas.
Well, you've finished the fundamental plan. In the next installment, we'll look at creating effective content, including considerations that make writing for the Web different from writing for print.
NEXT: WebDesign Clinic#6: Effective Content
Content ©1999 Dr. Barbara Strand.
All Rights Reserved.
All Rights Reserved.