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Inside the Book
Living
Websites is not a technical manual, nor will it transform you into a Web
guru. What it will do, is help you understand the Web, the possibilities
for your organisation and how to make your website more effective. The
book provides everything non-technical people need to know about how to
plan, design, promote, develop, maintain and evaluate their website.
It provides a
common-sense framework for managing a website, based on the concept that
a website is not a standalone project but a living endeavour with a life
cycle that needs managing.
The book is 208
pages in length, and is in A4 format. Click on one of the topics below to explore what's in the book...
The
Chapters
1. Understanding
the Internet and World Wide Web
- what
the Internet is and the context in which it began
- what
the World Wide Web is
- who
devised it
- its
scope
- how
it works
- who
regulates it
- some
of its specialist terms
2. The benefits
of an effective website
- about
the new economy and how to consider its effects on your organisation
- the
nature and extent of usage of the Internet and its impact on business
operations
- the
changes that businesses may need to undertake to benefit from the Internet
- the
potential benefits of having an effective website
- the
consequences of not having an effective online presence.
Sample
page - create cost savings and efficiencies - page 20
3. A management
approach to your website
- how
to think strategically about your website
- the
concept of a website's life cycle and its nature
- the
need to manage that life cycle
- who
should do the managing - the management team and project manager
- how
to manage the people - who is needed, outsourcing and building a web
culture
- how
to manage resources - equipment, time and space
- how
to manage the budget - estimating the annual budget
- risk
management - identifying risks, developing strategies to deal with them,
monitoring and evaluating them.
Sample
page - managing risk diagram - page 41
- 4. Aim,
content and features of your website
- how
to determine the aim of your site and set priorities
- how
to identify and articulate your audiences and the style of site they
want
- how
to select a name for the site
- what
content to include - including hints and tips on using various types
of content
- the
most popular interactive elements you can include and the advantages
and disadvantages of each
- about
databases and how they can be integrated into your site
- about
e-commerce and how it might apply to your organisation
- what
potential there is for cost savings on the site and possible revenue
generating activities
- about
prioritising your wish-list of contents and features
- about
maintenance solutions and which one will suit your website and organisation
Sample
page - check-lists for user-friendly video and audio and for prioritising
content - page 61
5. Designing
your website
- the
importance of developing a user-friendly site
- how
to develop a site that appeals to your target audience
- how
to ensure that users can find their way around your site
- how
best to organise the contents of the site so that it makes sense to
your audience
- about
international standards of accessibility and the need to comply with
them
- the
importance of asking your target audiences about their preferences early
on in the planning stage.
Sample
page - examples of site maps - page 107
6. Promoting
your website
- registering
your site with search engines and the use of metadata
- using
portal websites to increase awareness and traffic through the site
- advertising
in traditional media
- advertising
on other websites
- creating
reciprocal links
- promoting
the address on stationery, publications and email you send to people
- displaying
your website to clients in your office or building
- creating
an effective launch
- promotion
at conferences and via press releases and your own emails.
7. Building
your website
- how
to develop a concept plan and what to include in it
- how
to develop a tender brief so web developers can quote on building the
website
- the
requirements of a development contract - what it should cover and negotiating
with the web developer
- about
the three stages of the development process - what they entail and how
to manage them
- about
testing your site - what is tested, by whom and when in the life cycle.
Sample
page - sample development budget - page 135
8. Maintaining
your website day-to-day
- why
planned and sustained day-to-day maintenance is vital to the site's
success
- the
nature of the three aspects of maintenance: technical, updating contents,
and enhancing the site
the requirements of each
- what
tools are required for effective maintenance
- what
resources and time might be required
- how
to budget for on-going maintenance.
9. Evaluating
your website life cycle
- why
you should evaluate your website and your web strategy
- what
you should evaluate
- how
to evaluate
- who
should do the evaluation
- when
it should be done
- what
to do with the findings.
Sample
page - online polls as a means of evaluation - page 176
10. Summary
The nine chapters
encompass these eight principles:
- organisations
need to understand and be engaged in the new economy
- websites
are not projects but endeavours with a life cycle
- the
life cycle needs a strategic approach and it needs managing
- successful
websites need to be built to a plan that puts the user at the centre
of all things
- websites
need systematic and sustained promotion
- the
building of websites is not alchemy, it is a logical process that needs
managing
- a
website is like a puppy for Christmas - once you are past the excitement
of getting it, the long-term maintenance begins
- always
review and seek improvement.
Sample
Pages
Click on the
links below to download any of the sample pages. They are in the form
of a PDF which requires the Adobe Acrobat reader to be installed on your
computer. If it is not installed click
here to access the software.
Chapter 2 - create
cost savings and efficiencies - page 20
Chapter 3 - managing risk diagram - page
41
Chapter 4 - check-lists for user-friendly
video and audio and for prioritising content - page 61
Chapter 5 - examples of site maps - page
107
Chapter 7 - sample development budget -
page 135
Chapter 9 - online polls as a means of evaluation
- page 176
Background
I would never
have been brave enough, or reckless enough, to have begun writing this
book had it not been for the suggestion of David Bearman and Jennifer
Trant. They are responsible for the excellent Museums
and the Web annual conferences in North America. I delivered papers
and workshops on website project management at the 1998 and 2000 conferences.
The early material for this book was trialed at Museums and the Web 2000
conference in Minneapolis, and in 2001 I was able to road-test the material
further during a series of one-day
workshops on managing websites that I conducted around Australia on
behalf of the Australian Federal Government.
Throughout the
early development of the book, David Bearman and Jennifer Trant were extremely
generous with their encouragement, advice and guidance. In editing the
early drafts, they shared their exceptional insight into the World Wide
Web and what those managing websites really want and need to know.
I am in debt
to them and their colleagues who reviewed the early drafts, provided important
suggestions for improvement and helped me appreciate just how much more
work I needed to do! While the final book moved away from being primarily
for the cultural sector to embracing a wider audience much of the structure
and essential ideas have their roots in the earlier versions edited by
David and commented on by others.
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