Part 2: Netobjects Fusion, fonts and freebies

Share why you think someone who is not a programmer or superduper techie should try Netobjects Fusion or a similar software product?
The great thing about NetObjects Fusion is that you can think about and build your site in terms of content and design, not technicalities. You don't need to know anything about HTML to build websites and the other key is building "sites." A lot of programs focus on building pages, but a website is many interrelated pages and NetObjects Fusion keeps track of all that stuff so you don't have to.

Even without any technical knowledge, it lets you do things like rollover navigation (builds it automatically). It keeps track of your pages and can build the navigation for you, so you can add, rename, move pages and the navigation is still always accurate. That's very important.

NetObjects Fusion makes sure your site looks right in both IE and Netscape. Some HTML purists complain that the HTML files are bigger or not elegantly written. Well, I've found that, on average, NetObjects Fusion HTML files may be 1 or 2K larger (that translates to about a half-a-second download time), but then they look just the way you want, so it's worth it. Besides, your site visitors aren't reading your HTML code, they're reading your content, and so how it looks in the browser is what matters.

So while other programs make you think like a techie, NetObjects Fusion lets you think like a designer or writer or businessperson.

What do you offer readers who don't have Netobjects Fusion?
I write the FuseLetter for everyone who builds websites. Each issue starts with an entertaining story that helps you put things in perspective, then there are tips about design, marketing, online services and more. It's free, your e-mail address is safe because we never share it and you get free fonts and graphics when you sign up. What's not to like?

What suggestions do you offer to web designers who are befuddled with what fonts to use on web pages?
It is confusing, because what you see on your screen may not be what your site visitors see on theirs. The only way you can be sure people will see a font other than the standard fonts is to set it as a GIF or JPG, or embed it in a Flash .SWF file.

The only fonts you can be sure of are: Times New Roman, Arial or Times and Helvetica. So if you choose "DramaQueen" and it looks fantastic on your screen, your site visitor may very well see plain old Times.

There are a few things you can do about this. First, when you specify fonts, specify alternate fonts, like this: Font face="DramaQueen,DramaPrincess,Times New Roman,Times" . This tells the browser if it doesn't find the first font to keep looking down the list until it finds one it can use and if it can't find any of them, it will use your default font.

You can add "Serif" or "Sans" to the end of the list, but I don't recommend it. Browsers do a terrible job choosing the generic font. On my computer they always choose something unreadable. So using Serif or Sans can cause more problems than they solve.

If site visitors want to use only default fonts, there's nothing you can do to stop them, other than to use GIF or Flash. But if they want that, they want it for a reason, usually so it's easier for them to read.

Along that line, if you use CSS to set your fonts, never use points or pixels as your unit of measure. If you do, site visitors can't make type bigger so it's easier to read unless they turn off all fonts and sizes (which they can do) and then everything looks bad. So you're better off setting CSS type with % or ems.

GIF can be a very efficient way to set unusual fonts for headings. But I don't recommend setting entire paragraphs with it, it can be hard to read and unless you include ALT text, it isn't indexed by search engines.

Finally, Flash can embed fonts in the most efficient way, so you can use it for longer blocks of text.

In all cases, remember to set the font in a large enough size to read, usually 10 point or larger. I know tiny 8 point all-cap type supposedly looks hip. But it's hard to read, and if your site visitors are over 25, you're going to lose them. If your visitors can't read your site, what's the point?

I recently recommended your newsletter to a friend so I could get the Harry Potter font! How do you retain readers when people may be hunting for freebies and then moving on?
The newsletter's entertaining, that's how I keep people. While facts are important, we all get so much information every day (most of it so boring that it can put you to sleep) that if something's entertaining it stands out, you remember it, because you enjoyed it.

Very few people just take the fonts and run. They get one FuseLetter and think, "This is amusing and interesting and useful" and they stay subscribed. Not only do most people never unsubscribe, they recommend it to their friends.

So the way you keep people is by giving them something good to read. Something as good, if not better than the freebies.

Other than free fonts, what is one of the best ways to attract more people to a website and newsletter?
I think one of the best ways to get people back to your site is with your newsletter. There are so many sites and so much to do that an email (not too often), can remind them about what your site can offer. Just make sure to give them interesting information they are interested in, not just what you are interested in.

Another way is getting links from sites that relate to what you do. That also helps your search engine ranking. Good titles on your page are vital to search engine rankings.

And always, the best way to get people to your site or newsletter is word of mouth. There's no trick other than having a very good site or newsletter and making it easy for people to tell their friends.

Free stuff is always good. I know that in the post-dot-com economy people think they can't give away stuff. Well, you can, you just have to give away stuff that doesn't cost you much (if anything) to acquire and distribute.

In my case, I asked permission from companies that sell fonts and graphics to let me give away small samples of their products. (IMPORTANT: You can't just give away other people's stuff, that's illegal not to mention unethical.) What they get is more exposure from people who see and use their products, in the hope that more people will buy their products. So it's a win-win-win situation.

How do you stay so young looking?
Chocolate. Oh, wait, you were joking, weren't you?

Yes. Here's the real question: What's the most important thing you can do to make your website more interesting and useful?
Have more fun creating it. Include things you're personally interested in. Write like you talk. Fun is infectious in a good way.