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What is wrong with the web design and SEO/SEM industry?
It's not that I am a great designer (I work with someone that I consider is) as I don't have the visual imagination for site design/graphics. Although I do not consider myself a web designer I can/do write validated HTML and CSS.
I have been asked to take a look at a couple sites in the past few hours even though I rarely take on clients anymore and am amazed at what people are selling clients. I'm talking 70-200 KB pages that are 95% JavaScript and inline CSS.
One has a message that it only works in IE 6 or AOL 9, although it doesn't even render in my IE 6 (I get a blank page). If you try a different browser it pops up a no-script message stating you need IE 6 or AOL 9. This is an ecommerce site! I even changed my UA to Googlebot's and it gives the same no script message.
Out of 7 people I asked only two people could view the site in IE and it was unreadable in the screenshot they sent me (jumbled mess). The source code for the page that was sent to me after they were forwarded from their splash page has 1565 lines and there are exactly 12 words (including 2- "to", and 1- "A") of hard readable text on that page.
Another site has 268 lines of JavaScript and CSS between the head tags, and the content/text of the homepage doesn't start until line 459 and only takes up 3 lines of HTML code out of the 515 that are there.
The same people that designed these sites are trying to sell them SEM services - what's wrong with this picture?
In my honest opinion before people go selling their services they should learn the profession they are getting paid for.
Businesses who hire someone for their design/SEM need to realize they are putting their businesses image on the line and you better think long and hard about who you turn that over to.
Ok, rant over…
I see this all the time as well, and one can’t blame the business owner looking to take their business online. They’re hiring an IT, Web Dev, SEO for the simple fact they don’t understand this area and place their trust in a company that talks the talk.
This has been discussed here at WW before, but nothing ever comes out of it other than a rant. (like most topics). Some of the best minds and talent here at WW and you would think people would push for some sort of standards that could give the public some confidence.
I often wonder how much businesses loose yearly in the US/World from hiring incompetent programmers and “Internet marketers”.
But Hey - If everyone followed standards and did a great job, I might not have as much work... so on the flip he he
I should write a book "My webmaster killed my business"
gosh!
What bothers me the most is the very people that put these types of sites in the predicament they are in (and charged them for it) are also trying to charge them to get out of the disadvantage with SEM services... that tells me they should have known better...
Maybe it's a new way of doing business? Keep leading the clients into spending more money by dangling an apple just out of reach.
I will also say, in defense of these in-house teams, that the companies they work for have marketing depts and corporate structures that think of web developers as glorified secretaries. So they get what they went looking for and then, after a few years, they begin to suspect something isn't quite right.
I'm talking about all the Webdesign "slash" SEO "slash" SEM companies out there providing these services.
Wonder what the percentage is of people selling these services who actually know how to code HTML/CSS?
No standards, and companies will continue to loose money, our reputation as professionals will always be challenged as no more than glorified secretaries ha! (I like that one)
I personally would like to see Internet related developers be held accountable for all they claim they are… For all the stories I get from clients who hired someone who claims to provide this and that and charge out-of-this-world rates really kills me!
The question I ask the disappointed owners of such sites as you describe is "would you have followed the same procedure(s) to lease/buy/build a brick and mortor premises?" The answer is always "of course not."
I have talked with site owners whose entire content, long paid for, still belonged to the "developer/maintainer" because of the way the contracts were written (usually retained copyright). Still paying monstrous monthly fees to stop the extortionists from taking everything down. Something strange occurs to businesses under the spell of the internet.
I suspect the producers of the junk site you reference used a commercial e-commerce template - there are some amazingly bad ones out there. Just like you describe: bloated, JS for everything, etc.
This could be because it was the only way do meet the clients budget, or because they don't know any better, or because they are lazy dirty rotters, or ...
And knowing that the site is junk what better follow-on sales pitch than SEO?
And for those of us who do "best practice" work: continual work, increased reputation, and higher fees.
This could be because it was the only way do meet the clients budget, or because they don't know any better, or because they are lazy dirty rotters, or ...
I agree with what you are saying , but it's amazing what some people charge for this shoddy work. One thing I never did was allow a client to change my work ethics.
I've talked to many clients that would have rather been lied to than be told the truth of what can and cannot be accomplished whether it be on the subject of their budget, positioning or designs.
If you design sites, the SEO part should be included with the design, not go back and charge them to redo things after you already charged them once....
I am relatively new to the realm of HTML development (as a profession, anyway), but prior to this, I was teaching basic life support (CPR first aid, emergency medical stuff). Even in that line of work, you had those "bad apples" that only wanted to make a buck, whether the student learned or not (and there are standards set for this type of training, though how enforceable are standards, really).
Part of the problem is that the clients that get this crappy work done are being preyed upon due to their ignorance (just like when I get my car repaired...). They expect the job to be done professionally, but do not know what a "professional" job for a website is, which is why they hire a web designer in the first place.
BTW, I am new to this site, and greatly appreciate all of the insight that everyone provides.... Kudos to all of you.
Standards - I don't want this to turn into a standards discussion because it has come and gone several times within WW. I think though set standards can be general enough that is puts a the developer in a class of certification that holds them true to the service they provide.
I can think of all kinds of professions IT related or other niche industries that have standards. Agreed that EDU level training does not cut it in the real world. Web Related Development Standards should be no different.
I guess part of all this is educating a client that has been ripped off, that they may want to read their contract again and seek damages if they feel they have been wronged.
There are a lot of businesses out there with no business plan to use as a foundation. Many don't even understand business. The Internet is still misunderstood as a media that will get people knocking on your door the same day you launch. -->Because of this our exposure to tragic stories are much more amplified than other niche industries.
