Portfolio website goals
XHTML 1.0 strict and CSS 2.1 valid
To measure this goal I will use the w3 validation service on both my XHTML and CSS documents. The reason for doing this is because it is good practice to validate code in this way, and will therefore appeal to potential employees. Validation can help to future proof the website, and is an essential skill required in many job adverts which I have seen.
Use a CMS system to make all the content of the website updatable
Using a CMS system to update the website will allow me to keep the site up to date, and will also show that I can use these types of systems when creating interactive media products. Again, I have seen that this appears on many job adverts, and will therefore appeal to potential employers. Te evaluate this, I will to write a report explaining how each section of the website is accessible, and will asses how each one has been set up to supply the content needed in this area of the website.
Website should comply with W3 accessibility guidelines 1.0 level A conformity
For my portfolio website I will want to make it accessible. This will be done by using the W3 accessibility guidelines to assess if my website meets level A conformity. This will be done in an accessibility evaluation, where I will go through each point and assess if my website meets these guidelines.
Accessibility is a very important issue, and again is a skill which many employers advertise in their job adverts. This will produce a number of design challenges which I will have to consider both in the design and construction of my portfolio site.
Create a professional looking website which will appeal to potential clients
This goal is aimed at making my website appeal to potential clients. I will want to do some user testing for the website, and I will create a questionnaire which will contain a number of questions for potential clients to answer. These will ultimately indicate if my website is seen by them as being professional – ie if they would consider in contacting me with a request to produce some work.
I will assess this using an evaluation of the questionnaire results. This will assess if my website appeals to part of my target audience, and will highlight any changes needed to improve the website.
7 comments:
Where do you intend to find professionals to fill in your questionnaire?
I think this may be quite a difficult goal to meet, so I think it might be important to specify your methods for finding professionals to fill in your questionnaire. Also, how many will you be asking to get an accurate result?
I think you have either misunderstood or mis-read what I have written. I will be asking potential clients what they think of the website, not industry professionals.
I did think about asking professionals, but as you say that would be a difficult goal to meet. I’d be looking at asking around 30 potential clients what they think of the website, something which I should probably clarify in my goals.
It might be easier to make an online questionnaire and then link it to a design forum and ask for feedback.
Do CMS's have an easy function to build one?
Apologies there Julian, I misread it. However, I still think even a few professionals would provide a useful insight. It's sometimes the most valuable feedback.
@ Chris: A good idea, but I don't know how I'd do it within the CMS system I intend to use. I don't think there is a plug in for anything like that.
@Craig: Feedback from professionals would be great, but I'm not sure how easy that would be to obtain to make it useful. Of course there are Steve and John who could provide valuable feedback, but it is potential employers and clients I'd want to gain feedback from. The latter chosen because it is more realistic to achieve.
You have mentioned using a Content Management System in an attempt to appeal to "potential employers".
Then you go on to say that the website you wish to create will appeal to "potential clients".
I maybe being picky but I think it is important to have a clear idea of who you are trying to appeal to when designing a website.
Having a wide target audience could cause the site to be somewhat "diluted". I am not implying that your site will be, just something to consider.
From what I understand of your last goal it is your intention is to work freelance and your potential clients would be people asking you to design and build a website. My only issue with this objective would be that I would expect your opinion to be more reliable than theirs as they wouldn't be trained in design.
We have all seen evidence of bad design on the web (bells and whistles) that consumers want and desire for their own, this could result in you receiving unreliable feedback.
So I think my point is that maybe you should consider measuring this goal via another method. It wouldn't be appropriate to ask professionals if you are not seeking employment from them. Maybe you could measure the goal by the amount of hits your portfolio has or the amount of contact you receive.
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