Web Site Ideas

To help you get ideas for your web site, we have listed some of the common elements that comprise most web sites. These are not necessarily required, but they are a good place to start from.

Web Pages

Web sites are comprised of web pages. To help organize your thoughts, it often helps to create a list of web pages that you want on your web site. Here are some web pages you may want to include:

• About Us: Overview of your clinic
• Clinic History: Often combined with About Us; clients love to know where you came from
• Staff: Consider the staff you want to include. Often including staff with high turn over rates is a headache
• Services: The services you offer. This may be several pages (e.g. one per service)
• News: News about or relevant to your clinic and clients
• Events: Often combined with news; this typically lists events at your clinic
• Procedures: Information about the various procedures performed (e.g. castrations, vaccinations, etc.; typically one page per procedure)
• Medical Conditions: Descriptions of common medical conditions in client-friendly terms (e.g. diabetes, hypothyroidism, etc.; typically one page per condition)
• Links: Relevant links for your clients
• Contact Us: Your clinic's contact information
• Location: Often combined with Contact Us; usually includes a map and/or directions to your clinic

Page Content

Content (what's written on the page) is the heart of your web site. Good content makes a good web site. Due to the way people read on the web, writing good content for your web site may not be intuitive. Here are some general rules:

• Keep sentences short and to the point: People will skip long, meandering sentences
• Keep paragraphs short: 3 sentences is the ideal length for paragraphs on the Internet
• Keep pages relatively short: Break a long page into shorter pages
• Use headings and sub-headings: These break up your content into sections, making it easier to read
• Use bulleted lists: When several points are being made consecutively, bullets are easier to read
• Consider images: Think about images that may highlight your point

Writing your content in this style will both increase its readability for your web site's users and for search engines.

Images

A picture is worth a thousand words. That old adage is especially true on the Internet, since people tend to skim written content. A relevant picture can 'hook' a user and pique their interest. Here are some things to consider when selecting images for a page:

• Don't use too many: Often one image is more powerful and relevant than several images scattered throughout the page. Fewer images also contribute to a clean, professional look
• Keep it mild: Pictures of surgery, for instance, are fascinating to veterinarians, but many clients find them too graphic
• Some pages don't need images: If the page is obviously not suited to an image, it may be best not to use one
• Images don't have to be photographs: Sometimes diagrams (e.g. drawings) do a better job of illustrating a point
• Make sure you own the rights: Don't grab images off the Internet for your web site; you may run into copyright trouble

Don't worry if you do not have a particular photograph or diagram available. At this point, just be creative, and consider the best image for the page. When your web site is being built, any missing images will be generated.

Photography Tips

• Consider the composition:
  • What's in the background? If the background is distracting, move the location or the camera to create a clean background for your picture
  • Focus on your subject: Be sure your camera focuses on the subject of the picture
  • Take several shots: With digital photography, you can afford to take several shots in case one shot doesn't look good (e.g. is blurry)
  • Try shooting from unique angles: This adds visual interest to your pictures that will grab people's attention
  • Turn off the flash: often shots taken in natural light look better. Keep the camera very still for these shots, though; they take longer to expose
  • Use the rule of thirds: Place your subject on a point 1/3 the distance from the edge of the shot (horizontally or vertically or both). This creates a much more interesting picture than the typical subject-centred approach
• Use a high resolution: This allows the picture to be cropped, which means you don't have to zoom in as close, reducing blur and pixelation
• Get a good camera: The better the camera, the better the shots
• Consider a tripod: A tripod keeps the camera still and level, both of which create better pictures
• Turn on the lights: rather than use a flash, try turning on all the lights and opening window coverings to illuminate your subject