A client in the HR field asked this week about the value of a Flash intro on a website to set themselves apart from competitors.
I explained strategic positioning and good design is what effectively differentiates a business from its competitors. In fact, if you do a really good job, you can actually make your competition look dull and unimportant.
As I recently noted on Web Designer Wall, Flash intros were tolerated in the ’90s when the Web was a novelty. People were excited about this new thing called the World Wide Web, and many of us spent countless hours surfing it. Spinning images and assorted gimmicks were tolerated, and even considered cool.
Not today. Now people just want to get the information they’re looking for, and get things done quickly and easily.
Still, some business owners think they’ll “wow” people with Flash intros. In fact, a web designer recently told me about an architecture company that spent tens of thousands of dollars on a Flash intro.
Unfortunately, they wasted their money on something that will only get in the way of their visitors. They could have spent that money on search engine optimization, or a host of other marketing and sales tools and campaigns, which would actually generate leads and sales, and promote growth.
While it can take web designers and developers several weeks to design and develop a Flash intro, it takes visitors just a fraction of a second to click their way to the competition.
Flash rocks, but I admit it is over used by designers. It should be used as a tool, not as a foundation for a website.