The following tips are a guideline to assist you the award applicant to understand what we are looking for specifically. Reading these guidelines will further enhance your understanding of what it will take to win an award. We have included suggestions on what we find desirable and what we find undesirable within a site.
Desirable Elements
Originally created content refers to anything you yourself have created. This may be in the form of written, photographic/artistic works and or music you have composed.
Organizing your content into a format that smoothly takes your visitor through your site. Much like the chapters of a book. The cover is your front page, and must entice the visitor to explore your pages further. Each section can be seen as chapters that build the interest of your visitors. Until the final chapter which will deliver your intended message of your site subject.
When writing a good article or story, correct spelling and grammar are necessary. Without these critical elements, some of your intended message is lost. Use of a spelling and grammar checkers are highly recommended. There are many free resources on the web to assist with these tasks. Nobody is perfect with spelling and grammar, and it is unfair to expect that anyone could be. There is some latitude as some spelling errors get by the best writers.
Checking your external links on a regular basis. Everyday there is bound to be a link to your site that has been inadvertently broken. It happens! There are some really good link checkers also free for your use. The link checker we prefer is Xenu.
Like every book written, there is a table of contents. The web site should be like the book and provide a site map. Allow your visitors to see an overview of what your site contains.
Like every book written there is a central theme or subject. This type of site is the most interesting to us. Of course, each section of your site may take us on a different path as long as the journey remains the same. To clarify this point a bit further. If your subject is about photography, you may first introduce to us how you first got interested in this subject. Next section, you then show me your accomplishments, and next section who knows that is up to you as long as it is still about photography.
The site educates its visitors creatively, the uniqueness of your sites presentation, the more memorable it will be for your visitors.
Undesirable Elements
You've read this more times than not. Imperative point; do not link pages that are not ready for viewing. All great web sites are always evolving and changing, in a phrase they are "under construction". There is no need to advertise this on your site, simply re-establish the page for viewing once the construction is completed.
Resist the temptation to create a site that is a compilation of many unrelated subjects.
Slang expressions and jumbled text are distracting to read. It is important to remember that this is a global community, and not everyone will clearly understand the meaning of local slang terminology.
