Content Tips
The following tips are a guideline to assist you the award applicant to
understand what we are looking for specifically. Reading these guidelines will
further enhance your understanding of what it will take to win an award. We have
included suggestions on what we find desirable and what we find undesirable
within a site.
Desirable Elements
- Originally created content refers to anything you yourself have
created. This may be in the form of written, photographic/artistic works
and or music you have composed.
- Organizing your content into a format that smoothly takes your
visitor through your site. Much like the chapters of a book. The cover
is your front page, and must entice the visitor to explore your pages
further. Each section can be seen as chapters that build the interest of
your visitors. Until the final chapter which will deliver your intended
message of your site subject.
- When writing a good article or story, correct spelling and grammar
are necessary. Without these critical elements, some of your intended
message is lost. Use of a spelling and grammar checkers are highly
recommended. There are many free resources on the web to assist with
these tasks. Nobody is perfect with spelling and grammar, and it is
unfair to expect that anyone could be. There is some latitude as some
spelling errors get by the best writers.
- Checking your external links on a regular basis. Everyday there is
bound to be a link to your site that has been inadvertently broken. It
happens! There are some really good link checkers also free for your
use. The link checker we prefer is
Xenu.
- Like every book written, there is a table of contents. The web site
should be like the book and provide a site map. Allow your visitors to
see an overview of what your site contains.
- Like every book written there is a central theme or subject. This
type of site is the most interesting to us. Of course, each section of
your site may take us on a different path as long as the journey remains
the same. To clarify this point a bit further. If your subject is about
photography, you may first introduce to us how you first got interested
in this subject. Next section, you then show me your accomplishments,
and next section who knows that is up to you as long as it is still
about photography.
- The site educates its visitors creatively, the uniqueness of your
sites presentation, the more memorable it will be for your visitors.
Undesirable Elements
- You've read this more times than not. Imperative point; do not link
pages that are not ready for viewing. All great web sites are always
evolving and changing, in a phrase they are "under construction". There
is no need to advertise this on your site, simply re-establish the page
for viewing once the construction is completed.
- Resist the temptation to create a site that is a compilation of many
unrelated subjects.
- Slang expressions and jumbled text are distracting to read. It is
important to remember that this is a global community, and not everyone
will clearly understand the meaning of local slang terminology.