Underestimate Web intuition at your own risk

When it comes to the Web, don’t assume that everything is self-explanatory

How many times have you, as a communicator, been told the following by someone you are preparing communication material for/with:

“We don’t need to include that—it’s obvious. Everyone already knows that.”

And when you try to explain that, in fact, almost NOTHING is truly obvious, and that “audiences” can ignore, misunderstand or simply not get anything, no matter how simple, they still refuse to believe you?

Well, I’m here to make your day with an example of just how obtuse “audiences” can be, to throw back at them the next time this happens to you.

On the intranet, dead centre at the top of the home page, we had a big coloured box with the United Way logo that says “Click here to go to the ‘xyz company’ United Way information page” and the box is “click-able.” When my colleague created that box, several people told her “You don’t need to say ‘click here’—people know to click on the pictures.”

Sure they do!