Build a better rank-and-file website: guideline #1 Information (rev)

A few years back, I wrote up a set of 50 Guidelines for building an effective rank-and-file website. I got the guidelines idea from Jakob Nielsen and Marie Tahir's book Homepage Usability. But I didn't want to just focus on technical issues or even usability in general. I wanted to help union members use the new technology for union democracy and reform. We need sites that help us organize. How can rank-and-file workers use the internet to organize for democracy and power on the job and in the union? What are some of the best practice techniques that union reformers are using?

The problem is the Guidelines are out of date, given the advances in tech and in use by unionists. So, I want to revise them. I would love to hear any feedback and suggestions -- I have a lot to learn -- so I am posting them here, one by one.

1. Tell people who, what, and where you are.

It seems obvious, but many rank-and-file sites fail to do this. Every site should tell the visitor:

• what the site is about,
• who it is for,
• who puts it out,
• where they are located and
• how to contact them.

The site's title, slogan, and URL should gives people the basics. This is the information that will be in the search engine listings and in other lists of links.

Using a separate "About Us" page is now standard, especially on blogs. Include your mission statement there (unless you have a separate page for that). Be sure to make it clear that your site is "unofficial" so as to avoid potential legal headaches. Many sites include a disclaimer...

This information should be on every page. People don't always come in via your homepage.

Put contact information front and center. Include it in the site title or slogan. Give your e-mail at least, phone, fax, and address/post office box if possible. If you use a "Contact Us" page, make sure there is a prominent link at the top of every page or in the main navigation. The more specific the contact information is the better. Give the name and e-mail or phone number not just for the websteward, but also of activists workers can contact to talk about problems on the job or in the union.

Anonymous sites.
If you need to run an anonymous site, make sure you explain why. People trust anonymous sites less, especially in unions, or trust them for certain things and not for others: an anonymous site may give me good inside information, but will I look to that site for leadership in organizing for change in the union?

(Note that the "who is" information about your site -- its owner and contact person -- will be available to the public unless you choose to conceal it. Contact the service providing your domain name registration.)

Example:

Look at The Carhaul Forum home page. http://www.terminalink.com/

This is forum software, so the design is not that of a regular website or blog. (White text on a black background is hard or most people to read, except in display or short items like the Prometheus ad on this Communicate or Die page.)

Other than the title (which probably works fine for North American Carhaulers -- but would others know what it is about?), there is no site description until you scroll down the home page, "below the fold". Who are these people? Where are they? What do they want? What is the site for? You have to look for it. Also, the keywords are fine (view source), as is the title, but there is no description.

Remedy: This site needs a short site description/slogan for the top banner. Something like this from an SEIU member site: S.M.A.R.T. SEIU Member Activists for Reform Today www.seiureform.org

It also needs a prominent "About" link. Forum-type sites often make About into the first item you see in the list of forums. Users may look for it there, so that would work too.

See the forums on http://www.uncharted.ca for a good example that uses a prominent "About" link. http://forums.uncharted.ca/ (The "About" text for Uncharted is very informative but more than most sites need, a simple who we are, what we want, what this site is for is all you need.