Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
Finding More Data to Create a User Profile
Other resources can help you create a user profile. If the client has an existing Web
site, you might be able to obtain specific data about current visitors from usage logs
and user registration.
Usage logs
are exact records of every visit to the site; they
include information such as the time and date of the visit, the visitor's ISP, pathway
through the site, browser and operating system, and so on. Some sites require visi-
tors to register by creating a user ID and providing personal information before being
allowed access. You can analyze this registration information when it is available to
further define the target audience.
Gage asks you to create a user profi le that identifi es the target audience of the
NextBest Fest site.
To identify the target audience for the new NextBest Fest site:
◗
1.
Answer the user profile questions listed in Figure 2-2.
◗
2.
Review your answers to ensure that the target audience you identified reinforces
the final site goals and purpose listed in Figure 2-1. If it does not, reevaluate your
site goals or adjust your target audience so that the two are compatible.
◗
3.
Compare your answers to the user profile questions with those compiled by Gage,
as shown in Figure 2-3.
Figure 2-3
User profi le for the NextBest Fest site
1. Age: 30 to 50 (adults who listened to the music played by tribute bands in the concert lineup;
concert attendance includes entire families, but adult family members drive attendance; adults
are most frequently the Web site users)
2. Gender: male and female
3. Education level: high school graduates
4. Economic situation: one- and two-income households with incomes ranging from $45,000 to
$90,000+
5. Geographic location: United States, but we will concentrate resources in the New Jersey area for
the first three years
6. Primary language: English
7. Ethnic background: no specific ethnicity targeted
8. Other unifying characteristics: primary target user is an average adult who grew up listening to
and has a nostalgic preference for the rock music played by the tribute bands appearing at the fest
Sometimes clients and designers are hesitant to identify the target audience because
they think it will limit the reach of the Web site. However, a very broad target audience
can be even more restrictive than a very narrow target audience. A Web site that must
appeal to many different groups of people must be more generic in some ways. For
example, if the new NextBest Fest site is intended to appeal to an older audience (50
to 60 years of age) as well as to a college-aged audience (18 to 29 years of age), it can
include only elements that will be attractive and communicate effectively with both age
groups. You can see how this might limit some stylistic options such as graphics, word-
ing, and color that would be available to a Web site with a target audience that includes
only a college-aged group.
Some Web sites are intended to appeal to a broad target audience. Consider the
Internal Revenue Service. The IRS site,
www.irs.gov
,
is designed to be an informational
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