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April 05, 2006
The Great Spalsh Page Disconnect
I am not a fan of Splash intro pages.
These Splash intro pages are usually a Flash animation that (1) makes you wait for it to download and (2) holds you captive for 10, 20 or more seconds before you are invited into the website to find the information that you were initially interested in. I can't click the Skip Intro link fast enough.
I continually read different articles and usability studies that rate Splash pages as a major annoyance to web visitors. A recent article from Silicon Cloud called 12 ways to Irritate Your Visitors lists Splash pages as their #8 annoyance.
But I still get prospects coming to my web development business requesting a Splash intro page for their site.
Why is this? Do they think it's cool? Do they think it's part of the corporate branding process? Do they have too much money to spend? I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts on this topic.
It's funny, when I ask the prospect when they are the surfer, do they wait and watch the animation or do they head for the Skip Intro link. More times than not, they click the link.
In my next post, I present some solid business reasons why a Splash intro page is hurting your web site.
Posted by Mark Beck on April 5, 2006 | Permalink
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Comments
I am often complimented on the success of my website. I give a lot of credit to my webmaster for creating a site that is customer friendly.
It is not unusual for people to approach my webmaster about a website. They tell him all the fancy features they want such as splash screens or cute animation or sound effects. He very patiently explains that those are the things that turn away potential buyers. If they want a successful commercial website, they need to keep it simple. More often than not they end up with another webmaster and a year later they are back complaining that they just don't have enough business from their site.
For some reason, people take the attitude with a website of 'if it is possible, I want to do it'. Technology makes a lot of things possible - and you still shouldn't do them.
Posted by: Faerie | Apr 5, 2006 1:13:21 PM
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Posted by: george | Apr 13, 2006 4:23:40 PM
As the owner and creative director of a web design firm in Charlotte, North Carolina, I sincerely appreciate Faerie's post above about technology and the fact that just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should. I also try to steer my clients away from such temptations because it really is not in the best interest of their company or the clients they are trying to serve.
Jeremy Mansfield
Creative Director
Brand Aid Design Co., LLC
Charlotte, NC
http://www.brandaiddesignco.com
Posted by: Jeremy Mansfield | Apr 28, 2006 3:36:44 PM
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