I often use the internet to find information.

Don’t we all?

I feel so obvious stating this fact but since I often find websites that don’t provide much information, I feel like it’s worth stating.

Often, I visit websites that provide a short synopsis of what they do but have no real details. And when I visit the contact page so I can call the business to get an answer to my question, there’s just a contact form to complete. No phone number, no email, no actual contact information.

These websites are not usable. They are likely to lose business because they provide no information.

Does this seem a little over the top?

Maybe. But I don’t think it is.

Imagine this scenario: a local business owner encourages you to come to their event. When you visit their website to get more details, you can’t find anything. Since you’d really love to support a local business, you check back a week later. Now there is a banner image that says “Support Local! Attend our event!” When you click on the image, nothing happens. Or, for fun, let’s imagine that clicking on the image takes you to a new page that is dedicated to the event. It tells you that the event is one that is going to be FABULOUS and you MUST GO! It’s happening next Saturday. That’s all the information it gives you. An elaborate sales job explaining why you should attend but no real information.

This sales pitch is great – you’ve got to give your clients a reason to attend your events. But without any information, it makes it difficult for the customer to understand. More than anything, it raises a number of questions. For instance, where is this event taking place? I suppose we’re assuming it’s at the store. What time? All day? Is there a fee for attending? If so, is that cash only? And while we’re at it, which Saturday is next Saturday? This coming Saturday or the next one after that? When was this web page published because maybe I missed the event altogether and the event was just never taken down!

And when it’s this difficult for people to figure out how to attend your event (or buy your product, or support your cause) they likely won’t. Which means that the most important part of your website is the information.

You’re better off having one page of text that is full of information to help your customer understand your product or service than it is to have a whole site full of beautiful images or sales pitches that leaves people wondering.