1. Press Association Websites The job of a website is to house information and make it easily accessible.

2. Press Association Websites Information should be easy to find, read and presented in a professional, credible manner. Navigation Contact information Front page content Presentation and graphics

3. Organization & Navigation Accurate headings and submenus Logical subdivision of content Intuitively placed navigation Consistent navigation throughout website

4. Organization & Navigation Information that is organized under incorrect, confusing or misleading headings will make it difficult to locate desired information as well as frustrate users and drive them away from the site.

5. Organization & Navigation In addition to being unintuitive for users, placing navigation in the center of the page takes up valuable content screen space.

6. Organization & Navigation Consistency of navigation Site navigation is vital to the user and should never vanish or change on subpages.

7. Organization & Navigation Navigation should be placed in one of the standard screen locations: Top of the page or the left margin Good examples

8. Organization & Navigation The “Related” section helps unfamiliar or casually browsing users easily find similar content that they might not otherwise be aware of. Good examples

9. Organization & Navigation Splash pages should be used carefully because they usually lack relevant content, but the APA splash page neatly divides the subpages by category. Good examples

10. Organization & Navigation Good examples Information is obviously and readily available both by category at the top of the page and by quick-find menus in the left margin.

11. Contacts Page Easily accessible and visible Includes multiple forms of contact Accurate titles and job descriptions

12. Contacts Page Don’t confine users to blanket emails. Make it easy and convenient to contact individuals within the organization.

13. Contacts Page Browsing by photograph is a time-consuming method finding contact information.

14. Contacts Page Photographs add personal presence to a contacts page. Each person is clearly labeled and is listed with both their email address and phone number for ease of communication. Good examples

15. Contacts Page Good examples

16. Front Page Content Relevant and/or headlining Current Frequently updated to create immediacy Not limited to links and graphics

17. Front Page Content Overuse of front page graphics or buttons are easily mistaken for advertisements and seem empty of useful content.

18. Front Page Content Association history and mission statements are not current content. While interesting, they lack immediacy, which will discourage frequent return visits.

19. Front Page Content Stories are time stamped to assure the user of their immediacy. Frequent updates will bring readers back to the page more often in hopes of new stories. Good examples

20. Front Page Content Not all of the information has to be on the front page, but include enough to entice the reader. Good examples

21. Front Page Content If generating/authoring timely front page content is not feasible, there are other sources: Member newspaper headlines : They may appreciate the additional traffic. Industry news : The newspaper world is undergoing massive changes. Find the interesting articles and keep your members up to date. User-generated content : Let papers generate messages they want to share with other members.

22. Presentation & Graphics Prominent name and logo Professional presentation Accounting for varying monitor and color resolution Avoid eye strain Limited, if any, use of clip art

23. Presentation & Graphics Clip art and lack of a unified design can compromise the professional appearance of a website.

24. Presentation & Graphics Too much uniformity results in undifferentiated content, and identical layouts make the site resemble a page of advertisements.

25. Presentation & Graphics Overly text-heavy sites strain the eyes and the attention span of most readers. Use graphics and photographs to break up and accent page content.

26. Presentation & Graphics Be sure that graphical elements do not compete or impair one another. Bright, busy or patterned backgrounds may interfere with text’s readability.

27. Presentation & Graphics Consider other computer arrangements when designing a site. Colors that appear soft or bright on an LCD (flat screen) monitor may be jarring or dingy on a CRT.

28. Presentation & Graphics A unified theme of colors, graphics and fonts maintains a sense of professionalism in a website. Good examples

29. Presentation & Graphics Vivid or bright colors (especially red) deliver a sense of excitement, urgency or immediacy. Good examples

30. Presentation & Graphics Cool color theme and strong linear design create a calm, confident appearance. Good examples

31. Presentation & Graphics A website does not need to be graphic intensive to achieve a professional appearance. Good examples

32. Presentation & Graphics A site’s design and graphics should reflect its purpose. Good examples

33. A press association website should include: Intuitive, consistent and logical navigation.

34. A press association website should include: An easily accessible, accurate and thorough contacts page.

35. A press association website should include: Up-to-date and relevant front page content.

36. A press association website should include: Professional, branded appearance.