{"id":692,"date":"2008-07-23T06:30:23","date_gmt":"2008-07-23T05:30:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.corporate-eye.com\/?p=692"},"modified":"2008-07-23T04:51:58","modified_gmt":"2008-07-23T03:51:58","slug":"website-branding-and-usability","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.corporate-eye.com\/main\/website-branding-and-usability\/","title":{"rendered":"Website Branding and Usability"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’ve been thinking about website design and branding this week, so I thought it would be a good time to talk about branding and website usability here on Corporate Eye.\u00a0 Having come from a large corporate background, I’m well aware of the struggle between the marketing and IT groups when it comes time to create a new website.\u00a0 The process begins by putting two groups of people who think completely differently in a room together and forcing them to create an end result that not only works<\/strong> but also drives business<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

A critical component of the “drives business<\/strong>” part of the website development process is branding.\u00a0 Naturally, a corporate website must include the expected branding elements such as logo, nomenclature, colors, fonts, etc., but branding messages are equally important.\u00a0 From a branding perspective, a website needs to communicate who the company is, what they do and what they stand for in an instant.\u00a0 Information must be readily available and easily accessible to ensure the user experience is seamless and customer expectations are met every step of the way.<\/p>\n

That leads us to the “works<\/strong>” part of the website development process.\u00a0 Believe it or not, the usability aspect of website development does not fall solely in the hands of the IT team.\u00a0 Instead, usability should also encompass the aforementioned user experience and customer expectation components.\u00a0 Your brand message is communicated not just through the words on your web pages but also in the experiences people have on that website.\u00a0 If they can’t find the information they need, get error messages or leave frustrated, then that experience doesn’t bode well for your brand.\u00a0 Those visitors are apt to leave your website with a negative impression of your company and brand, which they are likely to share with friends and family.<\/p>\n

Bottom line, don’t think website usability lies solely in the hands of your IT department.\u00a0 Usability reflects your brand.\u00a0 When you develop your website, ensure your brand messages and promise are communicated clearly through words and design, but also take time to ensure\u00a0the site functions as visitors would expect it to.\u00a0 Doing so will\u00a0create a comprehensive and consistent branding experience.<\/p>\n

Image: <\/em>Flickr<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I’ve been thinking about website design and branding this week, so I thought it would be a good time to talk about branding and website usability here on Corporate Eye.\u00a0 Having come from a large corporate background, I’m well aware of the struggle between the marketing and IT groups when it comes time to create 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