Web site myths

A good web site design has no session time limit and is accessible to people with disabilities. An assistive technology, user friendly web site.

Technophobia is at the root of most web site myths. Myths are usually harmless and amusing, but can live longer than the people who start them. Many myths begin as a reasonable, or at least understandable, explanation to questions that people are afraid to ask. If knowledge is power, myths are created when people feel powerless and need comfortable answers. Someone will always give AN ANSWER to anyone who'll listen! A reasonable sounding myth is usually more quickly accepted, than an uncomfortable fact. When myths are repeated often enough, or published by people who should actually know the truth, they become part of our common knowledge. Nearly every myth begins as a part truth and just keeps growing and growing and growing. If you have already accepted the following myths as facts, remember to ask Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy to confirm your business web site design decisions. Read: What is a web site? before you make an investment in a web site.

Common web site myths are often accepted as website facts, so here's a few we've heard:

Myth: A beautiful website must be a good web site design

Fact: The website design industry is filled with graphic artists who pose as website designers. While they certainly understand good presentation affects ( pictures and colors), they frequently promote SEM as the best way to attract visitors to a business website. Graphic artists are great at designing your logo, but keep them away from your company website! This can be an expensive business lesson to learn the hard way.

Myth: An award winning website will impress potential customers

Fact: Award winning website designs usually win awards from website designers, not customers. Your customers are actually trying to find business information sites when they look for good business information. Award winning sites rarely provide much information! See Beautiful business websites above.

Myth: You have to pay search engines to get a first page search result

Fact: Although you can pay search engines to list your site in their paid advertising, sponsored matches or paid inclusion section on the first page of the search results ( SERP), the major search engine organizations don't sell out that easily. They all list websites with the best or most relevant information at the top of their natural or organic search results. You don't pay them anything, but you do need to give them the best website information pages to get there. SEO helps your website provide quality information. Do you ever visit websites listed in the paid results section, first? Then why would you pay a search engine to list YOUR site there? Learn how to search and you will always find good answers to questions.

**Myth: Every business website get's millions of visitors**

Fact: A website may get almost no visitors if search engines don't rank it high enough for visitors to find it.

Myth: Every company should have a website

Fact: Many business owners believe that a website, any website, will help their business find new customers. A bad website could actually damage your business credibility and send new customers to your competitors sites! No website, is sometimes better than a really bad website. Why have a company website, if your site is so poorly written that it hurts your business?

Myth: The internet or WWW was invented for business

Fact: The original vision of the inventor of the www had nothing to do with business websites or website advertising. The goal and purpose of the web founder Timothy Berners-Lee, was to create a world wide repository of accessible human knowledge, that could be made available to anyone who wanted it, anywhere, anytime. A good business website contributes information to that goal, but business will never be allowed to control or own the web.

Myth: A business web site is simply another advertising expense

Fact: A good web site is much more than advertising. It's good business information, that your customers can access 24/7/365. Unlike advertising, you don't need to keep spending thousands of dollars each month to keep your company in the spotlight. SEO helps. A business web site is actually about helping customers.

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Myth: Anyone can build a good looking website

Fact: Anyone can design a visually appealing website. With all the free html text editors and web page templates available, designing a beautiful website is easy. The GOOD part, is where the myth becomes obvious. A good website provides good information for a specific user group. Your customers are actually trying to find business information sites when they look for good business information.

Myth: You must submit your site to search engines

Fact: Submitting your site to any search engine will cost you ranking position that could have boosted your search results. Search engines follow links to find good information pages. Links from other websites allow search engines to find you, by themselves. Good links are what the web in World Wide Web is all about.

Myth: Every web site lies

Fact: Since most business website visitors will be skeptical of your information, establishing credibility is critical to your success. There is a lot of snake oil for sale on the web. A good business web site must provide good business information to become successful. Website lies will always be exposed.

Myth: Get rich quick with a company website

Fact: A profitable website comes with time. It usually takes several months for the search engines to rank a new website high enough to get a lot of referral visitors. Of course there are exceptions. Like every get rich quick scheme, a website can become a costly illusion. We find that the best business websites compliment an existing bricks and mortar business.

**Myth: Google is the best or only search engine to use**

Fact: Although Google receives more than half of the search traffic, this search engine has it's limitations. The priority for Google is NAMES, or proper nouns. If you are looking for people or brand name products, Google is great at listing the best sites. Concept ideas or business information is not a Google priority. Other search engines often provide better search results. Ignore other search engines at your own risk.

Myth: Our friend at Google can get you a good page rank

Fact: Beyond a myth, this one is an outright lie. Any optimizer that tells you they get special treatment from Google should be avoided. Google's ranking system does not involve any human input. It's completely automatic and is based on their patented algorithm. Nobody at Google is going to break the rules for you, but it's a common marketing myth.

Myth: An accessible website is a waste of money

Fact: Website accessibility is important to every business website. In some cases, it's even a legal requirement. Accessibility can greatly improve your site's search results. Better search results means more visitors. More visitors means more customers. See why good page titles also help create a user friendly website.

Myth: You can build a great business website for under $1000

Fact: There many offers of cheap business web designs available online. Before you accept one of these packages, do some serious research. Most of these cookie-cutter sites were produced by graphic artists. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is? High quality websites, can't be built in a day. When companies like Nike and BMW have spent more than $20,000,000 to have their sites built, what do you think you get for $1000? You will probably get what you pay for. Want to know what a good website costs?

Myth: Good website designers must be graphic artists

Fact: Graphic artists often pose as good web site designers. We use the services of several graphic artists when necessary. However, balance between presentation effects and good business information is sometimes difficult for graphic artists to understand. Websites are about information. Good graphics help, but should never replace real information. There is more to a business website than all the pretty pictures! Your customers are actually trying to find business information sites, when they search for business information.

Myth: SEO is all about meta tags

Fact: Meta tags are far less important than they used to be for website optimizing. They are very important for web browsers and your user's experience. Important meta tags used properly, help create a user friendly website and usable websites are valuable websites.

Myth: Just buy the book to become a great SEO

Fact: Reading any reference material is a good place to start. Expecting to become a good seo by reading a book, might be a stretch. Most good SEOs have spent years learning and practicing their profession. They already know there is no magic formula or secret tricks to become a good seo.

Myth: It's safe to give your credit card to sites that begin with HTTPS

Fact: Security online, is not as simple as a secure connection to your site. The most vulnerable time for customer data theft is after the site receives it. We strongly caution every client about privacy and security issues. Most identity theft occurs when companies don't adequately protect customer information, after they receive it.

Myth: A good html text editor will let you build a good web site

Fact: A text editor may help you to discover mistakes as you write web pages. It won't write a good web page for you. Helping people produce general interest sites, is what text editors are intended to do. Professional web sites are hand built.

Myth: Websites can say anything they want

Fact: A business website is responsible to it's customers. Portraying a good business attitude is essential. Although some sites make statements that could be considered outrageous, they do so at their own risk. If you own a bricks and mortar business, there are serious local and legal liability issues to consider.

Myth: Your company name is the only domain name you can use

Fact: Unless your company is VERY well known, using your company name with a .com, could be the first step toward search engine obscurity. Your domain name choice must be based on identifying who you are, what you do or where you do business, in good keywords. A good domain name is the foundation of good seo. Good website names help you get good search results.

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Myth: SEO and SEM are the same thing

Fact: SEM is about marketing. It's simple but expensive, advertising. SEO is about making web sites the best they can be. When search engines are often confused, it's easy to understand why this a popular myth. Search engine marketing can be an expensive attempt to salvage a poor web site.

Myth: SEO is illegal

Fact: This myth is almost funny. Every web site should be about a specific subject and contain specific web pages about that subject. Clearly presenting good information is what SEO is all about. That's not only legal, it's expected and profitable!

Myth: Valid web sites are important only to computer geeks

Fact: A valid web page is easy for search engines to read and browsers to display properly. Valid websites are also more accessible websites to people with disabilities. The root of this myth is with graphic artists who pose as website designers. Professional websites validate. This entire site will validate as xhtml 1.0 Strict. There is simply no valid excuse for any self-proclaimed professional web site designer to publish a site that is not web standards compliant. A business information web site that isn't valid isn't a very credible business web site, is it?

Myth: You don't need a site map

Fact: The actual myth is that you don't need a site map if you have a JavaScript, drop down menu. The myth about dynamic navigation features involves how search engines and human visitors find the right information pages. Search engines can't follow the links in scripts and flash menus. Some visitors don't have JavaScripting enabled on their web browser, so they can't even use your site menu! A good site map will tell visitors at a glance, what your site is for, how to find the right page and allows search engines to index your entire site.

Myth: Every business website needs a blog

Fact: A blog can be very tempting to a business website owner. Having an interactive site and comments from visitors can create some interesting discussions. It can also destroy your site's business credibility. Use extreme caution. A blog can be a big website mistake.

Myth: Links to other websites aren't important

Fact: Links to other web sites are what the web is for. Your visitors and search engines, value links to good information. Avoid buying into Link Farms, at all cost. Good links build good web sites.

Myth: Customers want to be amused by your website

Fact: Unless you are in the entertainment industry, your business web site must inform potential customers, more than entertain them. Customers want information, when they visit your site.

Myth: Cute menus are impressive!

Fact: Until a visitor tries to figure out how to use them! Simple html menus allow everyone to use your web site.

Myths and lies can destroy your business website

Many business owners believe these myths and then wondered why nobody comes to their web sites, or contacts them if they do. Good web site design decisions must be based on facts facts and good information, not common myths. Many business owners have bought into the snake oil, and learned the hard way that a business web site is about customers. Please do some good research, before you fall for another expensive website myth.

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