When starting a new web project, it’s essential to have an understanding of the features and abilities on each individual page. Sometimes, before putting together wireframes, the visual designer may have questions about what the level of importance of actions and features on a page are. This can also make certain that the client or project manager knows how the site will essentially lay out.

Enter the Page Description Diagram, or PDD for short.

Why Use A PDD?

A PDD allows you to sit down with your client/project manager and list out the features of each page in a non visual way (no outlines, just feature listings). This means that you can emphasize what is important on each page and if, due to timeline constraints, you find yourself leaving out certain functionality, you can make sure you’re not cutting the wrong things out.

How Do I Use A PDD?

The main structure of a PDD is 4 columns. The first three columns represent the features and objects that need to be on the page, according to the tier of importance above them. This means that column one should hold items like branding, login, welcome content, etc. Each item should include a little description about what they are and what they need to do. The last column is for notes. Pretty straight-forward. Now everyone is aware of what each page does and what will be on it, as well as what will be emphasized most.

Should I Always Do This?

A PDD is a guideline and breaks interactions and features out into detail. It may not be necessary on every project, but it can definitely help some visual designers, project managers, and clients if a project has a lot of moving parts. This will give expectations of where things will be when wireframes and mockups are presented later.

Sounds Great, But How Do I Make One?

Luckily, I’ve taken examples and created a template of my own, which I now pass on to you. Seriously though, there are several PDDs across the internet and I’ve created a format that has suited me the best. You may download them here:

OmniGraffle Template

MS Visio Document

PDF Example

Do you use PDDs? Do you use something else that’s similar? Feel free to let me know. I hope these can help you when needing to get started on projects!

As promised, here is the keynote from my presentation at RefreshOKC.

Download it here!

It covers a lot of the finer points of web forms and how you can make them work best for you and your site without an overhaul. Check it out!

Brand consistency is an art in marketing and positioning warfare these days. From mailers to websites to tv commercials, it is essential for brands to show themselves to the consumer in a consistent manner or else they face fading into the clutter of today’s marketing.

Invest, Don’t Just Spend.

It’s more than a logo or word, it’s your companies vision. This is how you want people to perceive your company. Your brand. By changing your public image around or not keeping it consistent, you’re telling your consumers that you’re not sure what it is that you do. Or what you want to be.

The mindset that a lot of companies have is that it’s more money to spend to keep all of their branding consistent. It’s not spending…it’s investing. If I see a logo or word in a very specific way and know what it represents, you’re on your way. If a company has 5 logos for the same company and same services, and they all seem to broadcast a different message, they’re teaching consumers to ignore their clutter or not to trust them.

You’re investing in a consumer’s emotion or mental association. You want them to think of you when they think “music”? Then keep that message consistent in your branding going forward. The logo helps to aid in this process. Changing it around constantly or not using it consistently kills the effect you’re looking to have. It just confuses people. You lose that emotional connection created between the brand and the consumer and it becomes less meaningful.

Creating a brand image your company can be recognized by is a sweet spot in marketing. It’ll help create unaided awareness of your brand, as well as keep what you stand for clear.

Is This Good For The Company?

Laugh as you may at the Office Space reference, it’s true in branding a company. If everyone isn’t buying in on the branding inside the company, how can you expect people outside the company to accept it? Here’s a small list of things companies lose sight of when branding their company:

• Touch: Every mailer, bill, ad, etc. that comes out of the company should have the same look and feel. If you’re going for the image of “trust,” make me believe it when I see your name!
• Sight: When I see your name in an official capacity, it better look the same. Countless times companies re-brand and leave the old branding on everything they had before. DON’T DO THIS! It confuses the message and no one will buy in on what you want them to envision when they see your name.
• Intuition: If I think iPod, I better be able to go to my browser and type in http://www.ipod.com and get there. Companies with branded services and products often forget the simple things. If someone can’t get to you easily, they may not find you. If your online presence is named differently from your real world product, make sure both addresses point to where the user needs to get to.

Where Do You See Yourself In 5 Years

The moral of the story is that if you don’t envision yourself big, you won’t be big. If you think the branding is the least important thing in your laundry list of tasks to get done, don’t worry, you’ll have time to work on it when you re-brand again because no one has a mental connection to your brand.

Just realize, Yahoo! may not be the greatest search engine in the world, but when you see their logo, you think “search.” Windows or Mac may not be the greatest operating systems in the world, but when you see their logos, you know what they do. If you don’t work on developing a consistent message with your brand to your consumers, they won’t think anything, and that’s the worst thing you can hope for.

Today marks the opening of beta signups for a site that I’m working on called: Foamish.

Foamish is a beer review, rating, and recommendation site that is built using Twitter as a platform. You can also create lists of beers you want to try and have tried. It’s beer reviewing, rating, etc. for the average person. You don’t have to be a beer expert to understand or to add to Foamish!

We’re (the dev team) getting ramped up to tap the keg and pour some Foamish into your pint glasses! The first wave of beta “tasting” is expected to start around mid-November.

On September 16th, I will be presenting about web form design at RefreshOKC. The presentation is called: The Subtleties of Web Form Design - Creating intuitive forms on the web through practical techniques.

I will be talking on the finer points of web form design and how to make them as usable as possible to decrease abandonment rates and increase accuracy and efficiency. I hope you will be able to join us!

I’m very excited to present and will have the slides up here following the presentation!

I’ll be getting back to normal articles next week! Stay tuned…

Having a good site design and content that people enjoy is important. Even more important are the subtleties of your site. A handful of minor details that can add up to make a big impact…in your favor or against it.

Subtleties are how software designers create such great interfaces and products, they’re how famous designers make purses people will pay insane prices for, and they’re probably the reasons behind why you hate or love your car. There are many details to be aware of, but here are a few simple ones that can help you give a pleasant and appealing experience to your users.

Make Your Text Stand Up

Text is what you communicate to the user through. This is why it’s important to have clear and concise text that makes sense to the user within the current context. Let’s look at an example:

Looking at Cork’d, we can see that the text existing on their site (the Good side) is very to the point and attractive, making the user want to join the community. The text on the right side (the Bad side), while clear and concise, lacks any lipstick to make the user want to initiate action.

The text on the right is, unfortunately, text that we see in many cases. This shows how easy it is to tweak your existing text to create a little bit more draw. The basic rule is to give the user a little more than the facts, but not a short-story. This is part of your site’s marketing, don’t assume your developers know how to write properly.

Continue for more…