Bennett Gold LLP Earns Mention In Toronto Life Magazine, April 2005.

Sharing Our Insites: Creating Great Web Content

It seems like everyone is generating a "hot" list of web sites, those sites that you absolutely must visit. Unfortunately, few seem to explain why their sites are worthy of special attention.

So, while we've uncovered some sites that we believe will prove very useful, we also identify the criteria we've used to judge a site as exceptional. Then, we identify some of our favorite sites. Every few months we will review sites using these criteria. As such, please let us know how appropriate these criteria are for you.

Content criteria:

Be Current. The site's content must be updated as frequently as the information it is providing changes.

Contain new thought. The site's content must provide some ideas, concepts or insights not readily available from other sites or other information sources.

Validity. The site's content must be based on a legitimate source of information.

Bias. The site's content must be free of judgment.

Clarity of writing. The site's content must be written clearly and must be at a level of sophistication that is consistent with the target readers' knowledge.

Format criteria:

Navigational ability. The web site must be structured to allow anyone to quickly find what he or she is seeking.

Security. The web site must provide a safe and secure means to conduct business transactions.

Reflect the content. The web site must take on a theme or present an image reflective of the content.

Links to relevant sites. The web site should only provide links to logical web site locations.

User-Driven. The web site should allow each user the option of getting information without having to stop at the site daily.

Be innovative. The web site must use the latest technologies to establish a visually interesting place to visit.

Contain interactivity. The web site must provide an easy means to follow-up with the organization for more information, conduct transactions and build communities around specific interests.

Using the above criteria, here are some of our favorites:

www.freeshop.com - This on-line shopping site has a yahoo-like structure that makes your navigation relatively painless. User-friendly for web starters or sophisticates, this relatively clutter-free site scores high on most of our content and format criteria. If you are looking for a place to get acquainted with shopping on-line (and get some stuff free), this site's for you!

www.news.com - If you are a hi-tech enthusiast bent on keeping up on the latest big (and not so big) industry news, your ideal site might look like this. Information abounds. Be prepared to either love or hate this site depending on your tolerance for long articles with many links. We find the quality of content outweighs the visually challenging format.

www.investortv.com - Thinking about dabbling in the markets? This site should be on your list of places to visit. Advice, insight, news, fellow investors, and on-line trading; this site is stocked full of relevant and current information. After just a few minutes, this site, overwhelming at first becomes quite usable.

www.strategis.ic.gc.ca/engdoc - Government plus business plus information equals red tape, right? Wrong! When the Ministry of Industry set out to build a web site, it appears as if they tried desperately to design a user-friendly site from which anyone could access raw business information. The content more than makes up for the rather drab look of this site.

www.e-com.com/buyersguide - Every successful web site remains focused, resisting the temptation to stretch into new areas that dilute their main purpose. This web site achieves a good balance while exploring the ever-widening world that is e-commerce. Among the useful resources are the site's service listings and calendar of events. If you want to get an overview of where e-commerce is heading (and how quickly it is evolving), visit this site.

www.imacworld.com - Ever wonder what a site would look like if it were centred on only one product? Visit this site and find out. While the hype may be on the iMac computer itself, the iMac site should also be applauded. The site is clearly structured, well written, current and easy to navigate. Even if you don't know or care about the product, this is a site for sore eyes.

www.emc.com - Businesses are slowly building communities around, and new functionality into, their web sites. The purpose is to attract business and raise the competitive "bar". Still, many companies are using web sites to simulate "electronic brochures". Whether it is lack of vision, or a good understanding of their market audience, a good brochure is hard to find. If you are thinking that your business and/or your market just needs a good e-brochure (for now), visit this site.

Here we believe that life is too short (and ISP time too expensive) to spend time wading through cumbersome or pointless sites. Let us know what you think of our favourites. Also, let us know what sites you have found exceptional.

Bennett Gold LLP invites your questions, comments and feedback: E-Mail: action@BennettGold.ca Telephone: 416-449-2249. Read Bennett Gold LLP's Privacy Policies and Practices.

WEBTRUST is a trade mark of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants. All other cited trade names and marks are property of their respective owners.

BennettGold.ca is a P3P compliant and W3C validated web site, coded and developed by Planetcast.