Why Web Standards Are Important { 0 }
First of all, these standards have been around for well over a decade and the latest most up to date web standards were recommended in 1999. Yes, when e-commerce was mystical and B2B was just the right term to make your stock price double.
With that said, the people that created the infrastructure for the modern Internet saw many user problems before the public demanded a fix for them. Most of the bad practices on the Internet are started and perpetuated because of an ignorance to these standards. Whether one does not learn them at all or simply doesn’t sit through a class lecture being bored to death by a short history lesson.
In short, follow the W3C web standards does several things.
- Cater to More Users. By following web standards you provide an accetable web experience for as many users as possible, not leaving out those with slow Internet connections, older browsers or the visually impaired using screen readers.
- A Faster Website. Your website will load faster. Your customers will stay. You will achieve a higher conversion rate. What ever the goal of your site, keeping your customers happy is your main goal. You cannot keep them waiting if you plan on giving them information or to sell a product.
- Better Search Results. By simply following web standards you will naturally find your self ranking higher in search results and gaining more foot traffic to your website. Granted, creating websites by current web standards is not easy, but when done right, it can yield great results.
- Because Rules Matter. If we didn’t have rules or a set way of doing things, the world would be chaotic or atleast a lot less organized. Look at what organization has done in the cell phone market for Europe, and then compare those results to the dissected US cell phone market. Less growth and innovation in products and higher prices from dissected markets. When you follow the rules of the web you see better results by the entire community.
- These Guys Are Smart. The men and women who created these web standards and recommendations did so out of love for you! Well maybe not, but they were thinking about the user experience. Their recommendations have made developing the web and using it a much better place. They have Ph.D.’s for a reason.
That’s only five easy reasons. If you wanted to know more I could list many technical and legal reasons for being standards compliant as measured by the W3C. But you just wanted five quick points right?
The Need for Web Design Standards
On the other hand Ten Reason Why Clients Don’t Care About Accessibility