What you need to know about your Web site
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The best websites combine easy to use interactive interfaces where prospective and existing clients can learn about your business and begin to work with you.

1. What do Your Users Want
   This is about what the viewer wants and need, not about what you want or need. I know this sounds a little strange but as you design the website think about what viewers want to know.  To answer that question you first need to think about who your audience is going to be. The web is the ultimate in customer empowerment. They click the mouse, they decide where to go and if it’s easier to get somewhere else then they will go there instead.  They want to know about access (hours, location, directions, phone numbers, e-mail address, etc). They want to know about services. Once they have learned about these things then, and only then, will they MAY be interested in you, your staff, or your practice.
2. Think before you Design
   Planning the overall design and structural architecture of your website is the most important part of the process. Since your website will be constantly evolving you want to be sure to create the ability for the site to be adapted without having to redesign the entire site in the future. Giving it an image make-over is easy but changing any and all of the links is much more time consuming and error prone.  The best suggestion is to use an organizational chart like the one presented below. 
   As a general rule don’t build a page until you have content to fill it.
   
3. Its about usability
   a. Content
   One of the most important rules of website design is “Don’t make the user think.”  Keep the language simple and the concepts self-explanatory.   The main page should have the viewers key interests presented clearly and quickly. Always put the most important content on a page at the top and easily viewable without making the user scroll to find the information that they want.    Utilize gripping graphics.  It doesn’t matter how pretty a page is if it is useless. Have at least 400-500 words on every page, otherwise combine it with another page.  This keeps the content relevant.  Every page needs to offer something special.  If it doesn’t then it does not need to exist.  However you also need to be sure that the information fits in no more than 2 screens (articles can be a little longer and should be in .pdf format). Also always have a clearly visible link to your contact information on each and every page.
   b. Readability
   Keep the text part of the site no more than 600 pixels wide so viewers do not have to scroll left and right.  Most web users are comfortable scrolling up and down but left and right are confusing to most. Keep all sidebars on the left or right of the page.  Central images, tables and graphs are hard to follow and often cause a reader to lose their place in line.  The maximum recommended screen size is 800x600 pixels. By the time you figure in scroll bars, favorite columns and other bars you are now down to really about 750-770 pixels in screen size.  Use contrasting colors for text and backgrounds and keep the backgrounds simple.  Keep color text to a minimum.  Text size should be readable so keep it somewhere between 11 and 13 pixels, depending on the text style used.  Keep the text style simple –NO calligraphy or hard to read fonts and keep the capitalization to a minimum.  Most importantly, use a spell checker and have multiple people read your text.  There is nothing more unprofessional than misspelled words or poor grammar.
   c. Navigation
   Everything should be in 2-3 clicks from the main page of your site.  Keep your navigation bar prominent, compact and ensure the titles are easy to understand. Ideally the navigation bar should be prominently displayed towards the top of the page or down the right or left margin.  This navigation bar should have any and all buttons or links present without the reader having to scroll down. Additionally this navigation bar should be present in the exact same form on every single page of your website.   Not only does this give a consistent image but it also makes it easier for the user to decide where they are and where they want to go.  If your site is very large then you may want to consider an easy to access drop down menu that viewers can access to quickly find the information that they are looking for.  This takes some planning about what the organization or flow of the site will be.  Remember that the main page is the most important page and should have any and all relevant material that a viewer may want. Always have a way to get back to the home page on each and every page. This link should be clearly posted and not be just a logo since most people don’t always realize that clicking on a logo brings them anywhere.  The HOME page link should typically be included in a standard menu bar, typically on the top or side margins of the page.  Always explain to the reader what they are linking to.  Otherwise it is just simply confusing.  If you are linking to another user be sure that the new site opens in a new page so your site is still sitting in the background so the user can easily come back to it.  Also be sure to check the links frequently to make sure they have not changed. When a viewer follows a dead link they usually will not come back to your site.
   d. Speed matters
   Sure websites that are very graphic intensive or sites that have interactive flash medium embedded are really cool but if the viewer can’t get the information they need quickly they will be on to the next site (which may be your competitors) and they will never see your site. Download speed is more important that graphic content and should never be sacrificed. 
   e. Image
   It’s all about image when it comes to the web. Keep your layout and design consistent throughout the entire site otherwise users may think that they have left your site.  Your logo and statement of purpose should be clearly displayed on every page to brand your products or service.  Keep typefaces, headings and footings consistent in both text style as well as color and background.  The text layout should always be left margin aligned and the text layout consistent throughout the site. Always optimize your images to maintain speed yet not to sacrifice too much quality. Ideally pictures should never exceed 72 dpi and be in .gif and .jpeg format.  Make a statement with graphics (that don’t take a lot of time to download). Be sure that the colors are memorable but coordinated, not only with your logo but all the other images on your page. Keep the overall design constant throughout the entire sight or users may think they have moved to a different site.
   
   ... A Few Don’t’s
   Avoid blinking or scrolling text because it is just annoying.  Animation of any sort and sound not used perfectly are distracting.  Drop the Pop-ups also.  There are too many variables in how these images are actually displayed and many browsers block pop-ups anyway.  Keep the background of the text one color and NEVER use pictures as a background. Ever try to read text through a picture. It is really hard to do. Look at well-known websites. Do any of them use these gimmicks (outside of myspace.com which is about as trashy as it gets when it comes to web design). NO!!!  There are certain conventions present in web design that govern how sites function and how they look. Simply put, an optometric practice should follow those designs.  Too much creativity will only push people away.
    
4. Design tips
   My Best advice
   There are three important consultants for every practice:  A graphic artist and web designer (who may not always be the same person), an IT firm and an accountant. They do this for a living. They already have the tools necessary to do the job. These tools may costs thousands of dollars and take a great many hours for you to master. (Adobe Photoshop the best graphics program out there, costs $600-1000 dollars depending on the extras that you get)  In the long run, they will be faster, more creative and less expensive than trying to do it yourself.  That being said, please be sure to sop around.  These people do not have to be in your community. The web makes it so these people can be any where in the world.  Get references, review multiple sites that they have created, talk to previous clients to find out about the designers personality and working style. Lastly, when you talk to them on the phone, do you like their approach? If they want to do it “their way” instead of listening to what your ideas are—Find someone else. Though they should be considered a very valuable reference (and you should take what they say to heart) it is still your image, your practice and your customers that will be lost if the site isn’t what you want it to be.
    
5. E-commerce
   It is the wave of the present and the backbone of tomorrow.  E-commerce is not always purchasing.  It is how you run and operate your business.  Consumers want to have their time used wisely. 
   a.Job applications, patient history forms, practice marketing calendar postings, on-line scheduling, patient education, and even just gaining basic information are all forms of e-commerce that can be done without a credit card.  They all make the patients visit more efficient and more enjoyable.  Companies like EyeMaginations (www.eyemaginations.com) specialize in educational content that can be integrated into your existing website to assist in the education of your patient. 
   b.On-line dispensaries allow users to view your frame selections before they ever visit the practice in person. It allows them an opportunity to shop and make their visits (and your staffs time) more efficient.
    
6. Technical issues
   Whoever is web-hosting your site should have a T1 connection at minimum. Though some of your users may have slower connections, the high tech users that will be accessing your site will likely have high speed connections and are much more easily frustrated with slow downloads. Always be sure that you and at least two to three other people review the site before you start to market it. Is the site easy to navigate, does it give the information they need.  Take any and all feedback to heart because this may be the only feedback you ever get. 
    
7. Marketing your site
   Now that you have it done, how to you get people to find your website.
   a. Traffic control
   Link to everyone and anyone who will let you.  Pay for right hand column ads on search engines like Google.   These directories are zip code specific.  Gary Leach of Access Media Ink.  (www.accessmediaink.com) adds, “Most users forget that people use search engines to find them! Search engines use words and not graphics to find their site. Search engines such as Google want permission to spyder or index your site. This is merely software that runs a list of links to check and make sure they are still working.  To give permission to Google a "robots.txt" file MUST be placed in the root directory that allows this permission.  Without it Google will not index your site in their search engine.”
   b. Market, Market, Market
   Put your web site on every piece of information that leaves your office. It should be on your business cards, letterhead, all stationary, your yellow page ad, fax cover letter, referral letter, newspaper ad, banner, and listing that you do. It is as important as your phone number. If people don’t know your address (your web address that is,) they are not going to find you in many instances.
   
   In summary, your website is your professional image to hundreds or thousands of potential patients, employees and the community as a whole.  It is more important than your yellow page ad and may just be the single most important piece of external marketing that you will ever develop.  So plan your site well, have a professional design it, and continually update it to keep the content fresh and friendly. 
   
   
    
   I have included a simple checklist that you should use to plan your website, design your website and monitor it after it has been completed.