Jane Goes Digital
March 16, 2005
Jane has not been as true to her focus as noted earlier this year. We had hoped to do more reviews--of websites, blogs, books, ezines and magazines. Today, we will recify that with a review of a site that started a blog some time ago, took it down, and rebuilt it in September of last year. More on that at the end of this website review.
Jane is more familiar with the website. We receive Rebecca Games' newsletter in our Yahoo! email on a regular basis. This morning, we thought we should showcase Digital-Women to give you, dear readers, another excellent resource to discover more about the women's market, and ways to help build your business if you're a woman business owner. Let's look at what makes Digital-Women female-friendly, keeping in mind that sometimes Jane needs help recognizing what works online, and what doesn't, just as much as our friend Dick.
First we look at Information Design: How well does this site share information with the reader? Landing on Digital-Women's homepage, right there, above the fold, is this description:
What is a Digital Woman?
She is a woman who has a connection to the Internet and is tired of working for the corporate big guys or sitting at home with no money, may or may not know how to start a business of her own choosing, wants to network with other women online who can help her to open or promote her OWN business on the internet so she can become financially independent through her own efforts!
Rebecca has given us the information we need, at the moment we need it, within 3 seconds of viewing her homepage. To grab our attention and 
keep us engaged, she uses images and catch phrases that are quick and easy to read and comprehend: There are many "paths" to the top of the mountain.
We are like the path with the escalator! And, "Women with their modems running..." (SM)
We like the way Rebecca engages her visitors, always mindful of assuring each reader he or she has entered a place that focuses on women-- especially women in business. We are also impressed with the headings and colors that grab readers' attention. For Information Design, out of a score of 1-5, with 5 being best, this site gets a 5.
Next, we look at Navigation. How does Digital-Women handle the tricky goal of helping readers get around the site, with a maximum of three clicks to get from here to there?
The homepage navigation Rebecca is using is not one of our favorites-- we prefer the boring, tested, tried and true sidebar navigation. But, Rebecca has been careful in developing her navigation. She doesn't have it scattered all over the page, as in some sites we've reviewed. She has a clear two-column layout, which directs the eye to specific areas, such as her four paths to the top of the mountain: Join, Connect, Learn, Promote.
The area above the fold, which we'll talk about next, in real estate, is devoted to helping women get money. We have to ask, what's not to like about that? For navigation purposes, this puts crucial information at the readers' fingertips-- one click here or there and she is off to discover ways to finance her business. As any good website does, Rebecca provides a quick way to return 'home' by showing a link on the upper right that leads to the homepage, and a link at the very bottom of the page. A job well done. Rating: 5.
Now we review how Digital-Women uses its Prime Real Estate. The prime real estate section of a website is the part 'above the fold.' Above the fold is a printing term...meaning just that: in a newspaper the compelling, eye-catching headlines are put above the fold. On the web, it's the part you see without having to scroll and should also include compelling, eye-catching headlines or content.
Rebecca packs a punch in her prime real estate section. If there is one area that women business owners need major help with, it's in finding loans, getting money, uncovering grants, and just connecting with others who can help them traverse this tricky trail. Digital-Women puts that above the fold-- with links to pages and pages of excellent resources and connections to banks, grants, loans, and other ideas on how to raise money.
Jane clicked through and really likes Rebecca's information on Trade Shows.
Each subsequent page, after the homepage, offers visitors a listing format to scroll through to find the specific resource or link they may be searching for. Simple and easy to use.
We like the way Digital-Women is using her Prime Real Estate. The site earns a 5 in this category, also.
On to Company Information: where does Rebecca offer visitors a link to an "About Us" page? No where, really. Information on her is found on the page which asks visitors to join. There is no indication that clicking the "Join Us" link will reward the visitor with that crucial information-- Rebecca's story about how and why she built this site-- so, unless one is ready to join, one may very well miss this marvelous, compelling story.
Company information on a website is a great way to get personal with your clients, customers, vendors, and visitors. This is where you showcase the real personal-- show your 'people' face and tell, in a story of some sort, who made the site and why. Without it, the site becomes a warehouse of links or an encyclopedia on a specific topic-- that Company Information goes far in helping to develop a connection to the visitor.
We would ask Rebeccas to include another link, on the homepage and her inner pages, to her story. It's a powerful one. Digital-Women gets a 3 for this section.
Our last requirement for female-friendliness is the availability of Contact Information. Without some way to contact someone at your site, the visitor is left in limbo should she or he have questions or comments, or just want to report a broken link. The contact information should include an address (unless you are completely virtual), and, where it's possible, an 800#. Women LOVE that 800#-- because we love to remark on things. And, we love to ask questions.
Rebecca provides her contact information on her homepage, and...Jane can attest to the fact that when you email her, SHE will email you back. That's superior customer service. Also, her address is printed at the bottom of each page. 
We ask...what's not to like about that? It earns Rebecca another 5.
Total score: 23-- clearly female-friendly!
As a final note, Rebecca also has a blog-- Jane does not want to get into a review of the blog other than to say two things-- Rebecca, your blog is difficult to read. It does not connect with any other bloggers, and it does not offer visitors anywhere to comment, nor to write to you. We hope you will spend some time on your blog and build it into the powerful networking tool it can be-- perhaps with guest authors from the Digital-Women website. From reading the blog, we see that you are so engaged in other things, your blog has become another 'chore.'
Yet, the opportunity to have it work in conjunction with your website, to enable your members to connect and network even more personally, is there. We use Lip-sticking as an example. This blog has done far more for us than either of our websites. We need the websites, but the blog is our voice online. We hear you whispering in your blog-- the world is waiting to hear you speakout-- loud and clear, in your blog.
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