Teach Your Print People Well
Make sure you have a hand in educating the people who will handle print communications relating to your Web sites, especially the URLs. Because someone who doesn’t understand URLs and how they work can easily make a simple mistake, like this:
Note the additional period in the one. If your user types that into the browser, the user gets a 404:
Here are some other things that they will do to your URLs that will render them inoperative:
- They put spaces between the words in a URL, like www.qa hates you.com.
- They wrap URLs onto other lines by adding a hyphen that doesn’t belong, such as www.qa-
hatesyou.com.
If you can think of any others, throw them in the comments.
Now, what can you do about it?
If you’re like me, you put the proofreaders within your organization in the QA department or task some of your people to look over marketing materials. The same people who proof your Web copy can proof your marketing materials. At the very least, you should take some interest in educating your copywriters and proofreaders into the nature of URLs and what they should not do to them.
Because when a user or consumer comes along and can’t reach your Web site, you know whose fault it is? Your Web site’s. Or your company’s. Either way, you’re dinged.
