What the people really want

The folks at PhotoShelter asked image buyers what they wanted in a website, and the results are surprising.



The headline might well be: Turn Off That Music! Now! I Really Mean It! Sure, it's nice to set a mood for looking at pictures, but let your visitor decide whether or not they want to hear it; don't make "music on" your default setting. Other highlights:

• Skip the flash intros.
• Keep it simple: people hate sites with graphics in the background.
• Make it easy for people to know how much things cost.
  
• If your site takes more than 10 seconds to load, half your visitors will give up on you.
• Don't play hide-and-seek with your navigation arrows.
• Make your site searchable.
• Function is valued much more than form. If you site looks cool but has quirks in the works, you're in trouble.

Thanks, Photoshelter. Nice work.