"Interactive Sites are More Successful than Boring Sites"
When the web was in its infancy, websites were a couple of columns of text and
color. It's been a long time since first generation web design and yet many people
are content with their static and consequentially boring websites.
Many speak of flash as the "Media of the future". Let me be the first
to enlighten you. It is the media of the present! Many companies understood
it's benefits a long time ago and took their boring static sites and made them
exciting and dynamic with flash! Lets go one step further and add interactivity.
Note, you will need the flash 5 plugin to view the examples below. You may download
it at http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash.
When we look at flash and its function on the "Web", we often think
it simply animates objects and text and is limited as a dynamic media. The fact
of the matter is that every consecutive version of the software produces new
and exciting features that integrate dynamic and interactive media together.
My job is to discover these new features and I will discuss two of them with
you now. The first is adding password-protected areas to your site. The second
is adding interactive windows.
A while ago, I had a client who wanted to sell reports on his website, but
wanted the client to pay first before they are able to download. This is of
course possible with advanced computer programming or, we can quickly do it
with "actionscript" in flash. A small flash movie is created where
the client can access the downloadable reports only if they supply the correct
password. Also, personalized sections may be created for specific clients who
may have advanced access. Visit http://www.worlddesignservices.com/cris/actionscript/password.htm
and try entering a variety of words. You will notice that nothing will happen
unless you use the correct password, which is "me" or "you".
Here's another example of application.
You are a photographer and want to show your prints on the web, but you don't
want every man, woman, and child taking them for free! Set up a password protected
flash movie, where the client can download the files only after you supply the
password to them. As I mentioned, you can have multiple sections as well. For
example, one section is "animal prints" and another is "flowers
". The client will only be able to access the prints that you allow them
to. We could swap photographic prints with audio files or screensavers. The
possibilities are endless for this new method of interaction!
Here's another way interactivity can add excitement and ease of use on your
site. Let's say you have a lot of content. You need to put it in a small space.
Interactive windows are the solution. These windows can be dragged, collapsed,
or totally disappear! Studies show that nobody wants to scroll and scroll and
scroll down your web page. You may think that the world is curious to find out
what is on the bottom of your page, but the simple truth is that they are not.
This is where using interactive window comes into play. Visit http://www.totalbiznow.com.
Notice that we wanted to tell the audience
about all the benefits of the newsletter and also add benefit rich content to
direct to the online form. You can see that with the other content on the page
that I was running out of room. The solution was simple. With the addition of
two interactive windows, we could fit all of the important content where we
wanted it. Also, it's possible to add as many windows as wanted, minimizing
the site to a very small area, relying on user interactivity. With proper design,
one can direct the web page viewer to the more important elements, and the ability
for the user to interact with the web page will keep them interested. Visitors
are also spared the frustrating and trivial task of continuous scrolling.
What an exciting media! You can password protect your important files and use
interactive windows to manage them. At Worldprofit, we've been the pros for
over seven years, at integrating your crucial company marketing with outstanding
design and leading technology. Add some interaction to your site today!
About the Author:
Cris Anderson is a member of the
Worldprofit Design Team. Remember, your site must be appealing in design AND
make use of tested successful marketing techniques. Let our expert design marketers
work for you! Contact mailto:customerservice@worldprofit.com |
