How to Tell Your Website Designer That You Are Not Trying for a Design Award

By: Phyllis Zimbler Miller Click author's name for more of his/her articles

More and more consumers are letting their fingers do the walking across a computer keyboard rather than the Yellow Pages. This means that even if you have a brick-and-mortar business you need a website.

Businesses that hire a web designer often choose based on a recommendation or the designer's portfolio. Yet how many businesses know which elements their website should have in order to be optimized for both people and search engines?

One basic problem is that many website designers are just that - designers. Even if they do the coding besides the design, they are often focused primarily on the design.

The reason this is a problem is because good design is not necessarily good marketing.

If you doubt this, think about the billboards you've seen with beautiful lettering - that you can't read as you drive by.

This leads to actually two questions. The first is: How do you learn what an effective marketing website needs? You should read everything you can about website usability issues and marketing-effective websites.

The more you know, the more confident you'll be telling your designer "nice, but no thanks" about some design element that interferes with the usability of the site. (One example: Reverse type blocks - white type on a dark background - that are very difficult to read. And you do want your website copy read, don't you?)

The second question is: How do you tell your designer that you are not trying for your website to win a design award - you want it to win the hearts and/or the pocketbooks of your target markets.

It's a good idea to be upfront when choosing a web designer. You can ask: "Are you comfortable that I may turn down your design elements in favor of simpler elements that make it easier for people to navigate my site?"

Take as a warning a response such as "Don't worry - you'll love what I do for you.Such a response may mean that your prospective web designer only wants to do things his/her way - not just provide a lovely artistic experience.

Yes, it's true that type size, for example, can look different on different web browsers. Your web designer may insist that the type size on his/her screen is quite large. If it is not large on your screen, it isn't large enough. The design will just have to be adjusted to accommodate larger-size type. Again, if people can't read what your website copy says, what's the point?

You should tell your designer politely rather than cruelly what you would like. In other words, there's no need to say: "I don't like that - it doesn't work well." Instead you can say: "That's a lovely design element although I don't think it will work for my target market. Could we try something a little less flashy?"

Bottom line: It's your website - you're paying for it - and you're the one who wants to sell your products or services from it. Therefore, it's a good idea to be firm with your web designer about what you want that makes it easier for your target markets to say yes to you - regardless of whether your website will win a design award.

Article Source: ABC Article Directory

About The Author: Phyllis Zimbler Miller (@ZimblerMiller on Twitter) has an M.B.A. from The Wharton School and is an Internet business consultant whose company website has lots more useful advice like this. Get her free report on "The Top 3 Internet Marketing Elements" to optimize your own Internet marketing experience - get your report now from www.CalltoActionWebsites.com