I have been meaning to write an article about something but have not been able to. Coincidentally, I chanced upon this guest blog post over at The Jumbled Writer. It’s a very good writeup on author responsibilities from novelist Aya Walksfar.
I have decided to reblog it (with permission). Actually, I am unable to click “Reblog” so I just provided the link. Just click on the title or the image and…ENJOY!!!!
Nothing but quality products, 24/7 customer support, a lovely website, excellent service overall. Discriminating customers demand for the best, and that’s what your business is all about. So now you wonder, after doing everything right, how come business is not picking up? Frustrating, I know.
Basically, what you need is to reach out to more people than the usual. Make your online presence solid and felt. That said, have you checked your site lately? Start checking!
“A lovely website” needs to show brains and brawn, too, otherwise, you lose prospective customers. Perhaps, it’s time to hire a web content writer to help you.
Basic Auditing How-to
I got this image from the well-known Search Engine Watch that incidentally has written a more extensive article on this topic as well
Site checking or auditing is essential. For a website to be an effective tool in your business, keeping it should involve critical analyses, content strategy and the right people to make it work. If you already have a writer in your stable, then good. Make sure she knows or learns how to audit sites as well.
Writers mainly take care of the articles, but the misconception is that’s the only skill expected of them. A skilled one helps take care of things beyond the articles. In the web business, content means a lot of things aside from textual information.
For a start, in auditing, you need to know how your site is faring in the online world. What is its domain authority and page authority? How many backlinks and by whom? On what pages do search engines list it when a search is done, if it gets listed at all? And so on.
Next, find out its existing page status problems and technical issues. Those maybe getting in the way of good user experience, therefore, visitors leave.
Then there’s the matter of whether keywords, optimizations, web designs and layout work or not. An SEO content writer with ample knowledge of web development and design would be a prize to find.
All of the factors mentioned, your auditor needs in order to identify and analyze problem areas and consequently fix them.
To be able to do this, she has to have enough know-how, especially in using helpful software and platforms like Google Analytics, OpenSiteExplorer, SEMrush, WhiteSpark, and ScreamingFrog. She has to be able to interpret what the results mean.
But the more critical part is the analyzing, the precursor to crafting solutions.
Questions to Consider for Review
Of course, you or your current employees can do this, provided you have the time and necessary skills. You can start reviewing the contents, design and layout of your site based on some of the questions I have gathered.
Contents
Are the business names and logo/brand visible and clear? Where are they?
Is there a header image?
Where are the Name-Address-Phone (NAP) details in the site? Do they include emails and toll-free numbers?
Is there a Google map at the Contact Us page? How about at the footer?
Is there a working contact form in all the pages?
Is there a navigation menu at the top? Does the top menu have dropdowns? Is there a navigation menu at the bottom?
Are there pages specifically for Home, About Us / Firm Overview, Blog (if any), News, Resources, and FAQs at the navigation menu?
Are there pages for the Terms and Conditions and the Privacy Policy? Are there links leading to them?
Are there sidebars? Does your site need them?
Are the images and videos posted in the site relevant and clear?
Are there visible social media logos around the site?
Do all the links redirect properly and to the right pages?
How many fonts are used in the site?
Are accreditation and/or rank seals added?
Are there copyright details at the bottom? If yes, are they present in all the pages?
Design Principles
Is there precedence (guiding-the-eye)?
– position (where something in particular is placed), color, contrast, size (does it affect perceived order of relevance), design elements (largely based on what is added to the site and how it affects visitor’s actions)
How effective is the spacing?
– line spacing (affects readability), padding (putting space between text and other elements), white space (for balance, proportion, and contrast)
How clear, easy and user-friendly is the navigation feature?
Are there breadcrumbs in all the pages, sub-headings and a sitemap?
How are the texts (typography) looking and working?
– font choices (do they look good and appropriate for the site, how many used), font sizes (affects readability), spacing, line length (affects readability), color (must make sure the texts can actually be read by anyone), paragraphing (left-alignment is always suggested to avoid gaps)
Are things aligned in an orderly and polished manner?
How is the design clarity? Are the pixels creating problems?
Does everything match (consistency)?
– sizes, choices, coloring, styles, elements, etcetera
Is the site aesthetically pleasing as well as useful?
How relevant, clear, appropriate and useful are the pages and contents to the site?
Are there unnecessary elements (music, flash, autoplay, etc.) that can be done without?
Are the title pages/headings easily understood and logical?
How informative is the FAQ page?
Are testimonials included in the site? How many? Do they appear real or fake?
Is the Call to Action clear?
– contact forms, online customer service representative, registration feature, email address for questions and feedback, indirect action items like “learn more”
Is the site selling something? Does it have an SSL certificate?
How mobile-ready is the site?
I have given you initial ideas on how to audit your site. These are culled from research (like a Psdtuts+ article I found very useful) and my own auditing experiences. There are more to find and learn but the further research, I will leave to you. Meanwhile, your auditor must be able to work with your web developers and designers to incorporate changes.
In auditing, it’s not simply knowing what to look for. It takes a lot of common sense, an analytic mind, patience and practical approach—all of which, the writer hopefully has. If your current writer is not cut out for this, find another who is. Hire a web content writer who can.
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NOTE: I’ve been saying this for a year or so already. This was originally a guest blog that got published along with my byline. Unfortunately, the site soon became inaccessible for quite a while. It went back then I found that somebody else took my place as author. I tried every way to reach them and actually sent a message telling them to fix it, to no avail. I just checked last Friday and found the site missing again. So here it is, I thought I’d share here. It’s just fair considering that it was supposed to be a reciprocal thing. No one paid anybody and if the other party is unable to hold its part of the bargain, we have the right to take back what is ours.
A week after Holy Week, we got our little girl…Little girl puppy, that is. 
It’s the first time this house got a dog after a long time. Our last dog was Odie and that was when I was still single and unattached, plus my parents were still alive. He was our last because my mother would not allow another one. She said, “Who’s going to take care of it when you’re always away?” It was when my father already had the stroke and my mother was not really strong anymore. I was away on weekdays to work so all the responsibility of taking care of the house, my father, and the dog went to her. A dog was too hyper for her. Needless to say, I saw her point so I gave in. I’ve said this several times already after my parents passed away that I would get a dog again. It is only now that it has come true when I’ve got my own family.
Isay is one aloof little girl. Copyright © J.Gi Federizo
Ladies and gents, presenting…ISAY. I gave her that name, after the place she came from, Talisay. She was already around two months old, though, with certain behaviors that we’re trying to “undo”. She tends to be aloof even of us and has a love-hate relationship with her primary human, my husband. When she does become playful, she can become too playful and treat us aggressively like non-humans.
Isay with her main human. It’s not easy capturing her every time because she runs away. Copyright © J.Gi Federizo
More than a week ago, we got her a brother (well, brother until their relationship changes). The kids wanted to call him Augie so Augie it is. He is just a month old. Good thing Isay didn’t get jealous and was completely welcoming the other pup. Augie, on the other hand, is more friendly to humans. I present to you…AUGIE!!!!
So hard to take this picture! Copyright © J.Gi Federizo
More humans!!! Copyright © J.Gi Federizo
Hope you like the pics!!! 🙂
Yes, “H” is for HELLO, WORLD!!! Because isn’t that the default greeting newbies get when they start something online? According to Wikipedia (and I think they can be relied on when it comes to simple info like this):
A “Hello, World!” program is a computer program that outputs “Hello, World!” (or some variant thereof) on a display device. Because it is typically one of the simplest programs possible in most programming languages, it is by tradition often used to illustrate to beginners the most basic syntax of a programming language.
My keyword there, really, is “beginners,” because after being gone for quite a while, it almost feels like I’m a newbie again in the blogging world. Just almost, since I haven’t really gone and have been visiting and commenting on blogs I follow. I did want to post badly, but time, health and resources did not permit me. 
To update you, and many maybe wondering why I am still doing the A to Z Challenge that’s supposed to be just for the whole month of April, well, I am continuing with it. I failed last year, and to think I only had “Z” left! I just don’t want to be a quitter. It’s not like it’s do or die or anything, for Pete’s sake. Maybe I won’t have enough luxury of time and resources for now to do it regularly, but I will finish it….
Can anybody tell me, though, how to go back to the classic version of the editor??? This new one drives me nuts! It doesn’t ask anymore if I want the old version, but I want it back!!! I want to be able to add text color, for one thing, especially when I add links (I just make them bold and they also automatically appear to be underlined somewhat). [UPDATE: I know how to go around it now]
Going back to updating you, in case you’ve been wondering, I was on leave for two months due to a very personal loss. I was required to go on such leave. I thought I could go back after a week, but doctors themselves always advise otherwise, so I decided I’d rather not risk my health anymore. It really was quite new to me as I’m not so used to getting sick for a long time. It was even my first time to be hospitalized.
I hated that I could not move fast, that I was not allowed to do more stuff that I normally could, that I could not take advantage of the free time to fix whatever stuff I wanted fixed at home. It’s nice to be cared for, especially by my sweet husband, but too much dependence bored me. It did not help either that within my recuperating period, I got sick again. Double whammy! The good news is there won’t be a need for surgery anymore. I do need to take some medicine still to make sure the swelling’s really gone ’cause I think it’s still there a bit. Seemed like it was pregnancy-related, but when I’m able, I’ll go have some tests done to be sure. Better safe than sorry, right?
It really gave us a scare, I admit. April had just started and I thought I could complete the challenge on time. WRONG-O. That second whammy took me away from my blogging because (1) I didn’t have enough energy, (2) I wasn’t supposed to stay up late, and (3) I couldn’t just spend fifty-pesos per day so that I could get connected to the Internet when we needed the money for my meds and our everyday expenses. Priorities first (redundant, but just to drive a point).
Dads, too, I know!
And then, there were the kids. His kids, also mine now. They now live with us, and now I know how it really feels like to be a mom. And anyone else who does, or anyone who understands, knows that lots of times, kids come first. It doesn’t help that I’m pretty OC, so I now realize I can be really strict (I know, gotta loosen up!). It was like giving rush lessons on how to be good, little boys, and actual rush lessons on reading, writing, counting,…Hey, school starts this June, so, you know. And, oh, we got two pups, so it’s like having two additional kids in the family.
I am back at work. Just in time for my birthday last Monday. No offense to my colleagues at work, but I didn’t enjoy it much because, well, I had to work, and especially because I wanted to spend it with my love and kids. But anyway, do expect more posts from me. Also, do expect they won’t be daily posts. Gotta work, y’know 😉
Thank you to my new followers, by the way! Sorry I am not able right now to say my thanks individually. Keep on writing, guys!!!
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