usability
An SEO & web best practice guide: part 2
If you missed part 1 of this guide, it’s here.
Having looked at the first three things on the list, here’re the next three:
- Imagery (relevancy, contrasts, copy-as-images, alt tags)
- Flash (why/why not, navigation)
- Technical (301 redirects, non-www domains, keywords in domain names, mod-rewrite for search friendly pages, meta content)
Read on!
1TV Licensing (www.tvlicensing.co.uk) site review
Everyone hates paying their TV license. There’s no escaping it, and it’s annoying to think we’re being made to fund the likes of Eastenders and other such guff. So how do they go about achieving this feat online?
I am writing this whilst on the train, so here we have…
A (short) review of www.tvlicensing.co.uk
As mentioned already, the thought of being made to pay for the privilege of watching colour television in our own homes is all sorts of shit – especially when the fee goes towards paying for programs you probably don’t even watch. Does the site support the shit-ness? Does it make you want to part with your money? Or is it like every other quango site? Read on and find out!
1Usability, loyalty and ‘Cognitive Lock In’
On the train into work this morning, I read this article at humanfactors.com (via @userfocus on Twitter) about ‘Cognitive Lock-In’, and how it can help create web loyalty among your visitors.
What is ‘Cognitive Lock-In’? Unfortunately for all involved, it’s not an intellectual’s drinking session…the synopsis is thus:
Cognitive lock-in represents consumers whose shopping habits bring them back to a site enough to return again and again – they have “locked-in” to the ease of use of that site and make repeated purchases over time.
I certainly buy the concept in principle: make a site easy to learn & use, and people will keep coming back. But it’s based on research from 1997-1998.
The report openly accepts that this was in the early Internet days, but that it represents a significant psychological finding that remains true today. I’m rather torn with this, though – and here’s why:
- I agree that fundamental psychological principles can hold fast and can stand the test of time, providing valuable insight regardless of how long ago the studies were carried out…
- …but people used the Internet very differently back in 1997, and I can only begin to imagine how we’ll be using it in 2020.
My question is: given how rapidly Internet use has evolved over the years (taking into account the pace of technology evolution, new tech adoption rates, Internet connection speeds, and the introduction of Internet-enabled devices), are these findings really still relevant?
Answers on a postcard, ‘cos I’m not convinced… 
An SEO & web best practice guide: part 1
Here’s a hopefully quite well-rounded and all-encompassing-yet-succinct guide to all that SEO and web usability stuff you keep reading about but would like to see in one place.
In this 2-part thingy I’ll be covering the following topics at a high level:
- Links (equity, inbound link importance, writing/colours/format/titles/targets, link buying)
- Headings (H1, H2, sizes, colours, keywords)
- Content (relevancy, not keyword stuffed, writing for people)
- Imagery (relevancy, contrasts, copy-as-images, alt tags)
- Flash (why/why not, navigation)
- Technical (301 redirects, non-www domains, keywords in domain names, mod-rewrite for search friendly pages, meta content)
So, without further ado, here are the first 3: read on…
1Usability failure for Apple.com, and the power of brands.
Inflammatory headlines aside, I’m focussing on the Account section of the Apple.com/uk site. This is a slightly biased rant, because I’m the one being put through this pain.
Here’re the issues I have with this part of the site:
- Let’s face it: the opening page for the account section of the site is, comparatively speaking, shite. It looks neglected, and doesn’t inspire confidence in the account-handling process (despite the Apple brand-wagon looming over me like an omnipresent God, urging me that it can do no wrong)
- It’s managed to bugger up my details (more on this later)
- It has shoddy form rules/logic that get in the way of me trying to update those incorrect details
These three things would, for a lesser brand, probably destroy confidence (and therefore conversion)…but because it’s Apple, it gets away with it. Even a cynical so-and-so like me stuck with the inconsistencies and annoyances just to have the pleasure of lining their pockets yet again. Weird, isn’t it? More on that later, too.
Read on to find out exactly what’s pissed me off!
0Firefox web development & usability tools
Firefox has become largely synonymous with web-savvy users and web developers as the browser to use: its combination of speed and expandability via the raft of addons make it perfect for getting the most out of your web experience.
I thought I’d share with you the various Firefox addons I’m using, and why I think they’re worth a look. It’s by no means definitive, so feel free to comment with other useful plugins you use.
Adblock Plus (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1865)
A fairly standard one to start off with: this addon stops unwanted ads ruining your web experience. Install it, point it towards one of the Adblocker lists (rather like a directory of sites/URLs that serve up ads, so it knows which ones to block), and away you go: no more ads. Reading sites such as The Register instantly becomes much more palatable.
Bit.ly (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/10297)
You’re all likely to be familiar with Bit.ly, the URL shortener – this is the official Firefox addon. It allows you to enter your Bit.ly API code, allowing you to shorten URLs on the fly, and mouse-over bit.ly links to see where they’re going to take you (and how many clicks they’ve had). Great if you’re a prolific Twitter user!
Colorzilla (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/271)
A seriously useful (in my opinion) colour-dropper. Need to know what colour an element or image is on a webpage? Click the Colorzilla icon, then click on the colour you want to copy. It’ll then give you loads of options, including the ability to copy the hex or RGB value to the clipboard, a DOM inspector, palette options and more.
Download status bar (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/26)
A simple little plugin that allows you more control over the standard Firefox download manager. Using this addon, I run mine in the status bar as a tiny little download indicator. Much more manageable.
FEBE (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/2109)
An awesome backup addon that allows you to backup all of your Firefox settings (including all your other addons, history, cookies, form data, passwords…everything!) into one file. It’s completely customisable, so you can backup as much or as little as you like – and it’s particularly useful if you switch machines a lot, or want to make your favourites and history available to yourself over the web (or if, like me, you worry about losing all your web access that you’ve carefully built up over the months/years and just want to back it up somewhere safe).
FireFTP (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/684)
A tiny FTP client, built into Firefox. Simple, free, and really rather good. Can’t say any more than that.
The Google Toolbar (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/6249)
If you don’t know what this is, you should probably stop reading. I strip everything out from mine so the only thing left is the Pagerank bar and the search box.
Live HTTP Headers (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/3829)
Great little addon for seeing the flow of HTTP information from one link to another. Useful for seeing where redirects are going, what information is being called/sent, and other little bits and pieces.
Screengrab (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1146)
Probably my most-used addon, since I do a lot of mockups and screenshots. Allows you to copy to the clipboard (or save to a file) either an entire web page, just a selection, or just the visible portion of a page.
Sidebar Companion for Sidewiki (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/46311)
Google’s Sidewiki is here to stay, and this is a little (non-official) browser addons to support it. Click it to instantly access the Sidewiki for any given site.
WCAG contrast checker (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/7391)
Great for accessibility, this addon allows you to check colours (usually background & font colours) against each other to ensure contrast/brightness is accessible according to the WCAG guidelines.
Web Developer Toolbar (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/60)
Open a myriad of options to you as a web developer – almost too many to list. Among the most-used for me are the CSS code element inspector, the ‘Disable’ commands (for seeing how sites will react without JavaScript, for example), and the ‘Resize’ option that allows you to (predictably) resize the viewport for checking various browser resolutions.
Got any other recommendations? (Note: I’ve left Firebug out because I use the Web Developer toolbar.)
A fairly standard one to start off with: this addon stops
unwanted ads ruining your web experience with unwanted ads.
Install it, point it towards one of the adblocker lists
(rather like a directory of sites/URLs that serve up ads, so
it knows which ones to block), and away you go: no more ads.
Reading sites such as The Register instantly becomes much
more palettable.
Bit.ly
You’re all likely to be familiar with Bit.ly, the URL
shortener – this is the official Firefox addon. It allows you
to enter your Bit.ly API code, allowing you to shorten URLs
on the fly, and mouseover bit.ly links to see where they’re
going to take you (and how many clicks they’ve had). Great if
you’re a prolific Twitter user!
Colorzilla
A seriously useful (in my opinion) colour-dropper. Need to
know what colour an element or image is on a webpage? Click
the Colorzilla icon, then click on the colour you want to
copy. It’ll then give you loads of options, including the
ability to copy the hex or RGB value to the clipboard, a DOM
inspector, palette options and more.
Download status bar
A simple little plugin that allows you more control over the
standard Firefox download manager. Using this addon, I run
mine in the status bar as a tiny little download indicator.
Much more manageable.
FEBE
An awesome backup addon that allows you to backup all of your
Firefox settings (including all your other addons, history,
cookies, form data, passwords…everything!) into one file.
It’s completely customisable, so you can backup as much or as
little as you like – and it’s particularly useful if you
switch machines a lot, or want to make your favourites and
history available to yourself over the web (or if, like me,
you worry about losing all your web access that you’ve
carefully built up over the months/years and just want to
back it up somewhere safe).
FireFTP
A tiny FTP client, built into Firefox. Simple, free, and
really rather good. Can’t say any more than that.
The Google Toolbar
If you don’t know what this is, you should probably stop
reading. I strip everything out from mine so the only thing
left is the Pagerank bar and the search box.
Live HTTP Headers
Great little addon for seeing the flow of HTTP information
from one link to another. Useful for seeing where redirects
are going, what information is being called/sent, and other
little bits and pieces.
Screengrab
Probably my most-used addon, since I do a lot of mockups and screenshots. Allows you to copy to the clipboard (or save to a file) either an entire web page, just a selection, or just the visible portion of a page.
Sidebar Companion for Sidewiki
Google’s Sidewiki is here to stay, and this is a little (non-official) browser addons to support it. Click it to instantly access the Sidewiki for any given site.
WCAG contrast checker
Great for accessibility, this addon allows you to check colours (usually background & font colours) against each other to ensure contrast/brightness is accessible according to the WCAG guidelines.
Web Developer Toolbar
Open a myriad of options to you as a web developer:
Site review: Adrianflux.co.uk
After a fairly heavy night out, my brain appears to be dissolving in alcohol. Before it completely disappears, however, I thought I’d do a quick review of the Adrian Flux (www.adrianflux.co.uk) site. It was relaunched relatively recently (within the last 6-9 months or so). I’m going to take a look at a few pages of their brochureware and also the quote process.
As a specialist insurer, they’re meant to be ideal for car enthusiasts and the like. Now, I’m not a hardcore car geek – but the 4-wheeled ponies do pique my interest. So have Adrian Flux accounted for not only the car enthusiasts but also web best-practice? Are they the Internet equivalent of a Mini Metro? Read on and find out!
Hey…I just realised that reads like Anne Robinson on ‘The Weakest Link’… 
Riverisland.com review: an SEO failure.
After reading the rather good eConsultancy review of the recently relaunched M&S site, it got me in the mood for taking a look at what else was around in terms of online clothing retailers. I spotted an opportunity to review the website of high-street brand name River Island.
Now, I’m no fashionista (updating my blog as often as I do generally precludes me from that particular gang), so this could work one of two ways:
- I’ll have no preconceived ideas about what works as a fashion site and therefore be open to persuasion, or
- I’ll be even more rigorous in my critique and will show absolutely no mercy or hesitation in being mean about their online offering
Which will it be? Do you even have to ask? Read on!
5Ryanair.com review
Having just been sent a great link to Ryanair’s response to the recent Panorama documentary, I thought I’d not only share it with you all (since it is inflammatory, funny and has a nice tongue-in-cheek approach to the whole thing), but also take a close – more critical – look at the Ryanair site. Panorama drew on the opinions of a web usability expert who, as far as I can see, has missed an opportunity.
So, predictably…
A review of www.ryanair.com
Ryanair are proud of the fact that they’re supposedly more popular than British Airways, and that their MD is “a kind and gentle, caring and thoughtful, sensitive and saintly human being widely beloved by all Ryanair’s 6,500 people and its 66m passengers”
Given that they’re so proud, how do you think their website will fare? Do you really have to ask? Read on!
8A review of Directline.com
Whilst wandering around the web, I stumbled across the Direct Line website and thought I’d write a quick review of their web offering.
Being the most dominant direct insurer in the market brings great responsibility. Does your website support your brand and support your customer proposition? Can a visitor tell where they’ve arrived at? As the biggest fish in the pond, it’s easy to get complacent and neglect your website.
Have Direct Line done their duty? Or have they let it go to the dogs? Read on and find out!
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