It’s a phrase I like and it’s a sort of mini motto for me really. Unfortunately it’s not one always adhered to when creating websites. There are many sites that simply don’t adhere to this though. It can be through what functions there are, through the design or through even their concept itself.
A while ago it seemed some mini-craze to misdirect the user with domains just for search engine optimising (this is still used much to my angst). I am a simple girl at heart and if I click to doggytreatforsalehere.com I don’t want to end up at a site selling me shoes – I am odd like that.
Design can be another culprit of misleading. This could be by the complete disregard of what the site is about in the design or through the design elements and what they do. When a website is designed baring in mind what it is to be for should be at the top of the list. Design should be about keeping the message in focus and delivering this clearly through good execution.
There are some great designs out there, too many in galleries that shine out and make people think ‘oooo I just have to use that style / that effect’. Throwing it at the next site you do without regard for what the site needs really is not bright. Apart from the debatable originality of such an inspiration (unless you do actually bother to interpret it), you won’t create a good design this way you will just end up with Frankenstein’s monster.
The elements of the website should be designed to work in the way they are meant. If a user is to log onto your site then sending them through many pages or into a pointless area just for advertising doesn’t log them on, it sends them round the houses and makes them just give up. Navigation is also a crime spot when it comes to tin ‘look over there’ techniques. It should just work as navigation. Yes, you can make this look good, original and play – but make it work as navigation please and don’t make it a chore to use or only work on a flash enabled gold fish certified browser.
One of the other things that is a big mistake is confusing the message of the site (message being it’s functionality). It’s not the size of your function list, it’s all about how you do it. An example of the worst areas for this are community sites. Maybe the temptation is just to great for some as they see the shiny new functionality of another site, so they become functionality magpies and whack it on without a thought of if it’s needed or even if people want it.
The result to me is more of a bargain shop than a place you’d want to be. Generally, this whacking on of any functionality that moves goes hand in hand with poor implementing of those sticker functions. Just because it works on another site doesn’t mean you have to have it. Site functions aren’t like collectables, they should only be there for a reason. Weighing up if it is going to add to the site or if you are just going function buzz crazy, should be the first thought upon even thinking about adding something.
Choosing the right words is also key to getting a clear message across and ‘doing what it says on the tin’. If it’s an about section make it about, if it’s a contact section then give a way to contact that is clear and obvious. If you site it large enough to warrant it then make your FAQ section easy to use and help to explain that it indeed is a tin, what the contents of the tin are and how to open the tin.
I swear that some people make websites like it’s the last website they will ever make. I doubt this is the case in the majority of them. Less really is more when it comes to ‘doing what it says on the tin’. If it’s needed do it, if it’s going to dilute the message then why bother?
Sticking to ‘doing what it says on the tin’ backs up the sites focus, avoids users getting brain ache from overload or head bashing on keyboards trying to use your navigation. It means your website will stand a better chance to be the tin you wanted.
