The Internet is strewn with out-of-date, incomplete, awkward, buggy, and abandoned websites, which largely accounts for the itchy twitchy of most Web surfing mouse fingers. Websites must quickly answer a third question beyond the standard "What is it?" and "Why should I care?" queries required of all marketing pieces. Visitors will ask, "Can I trust it?" and the answer must be "Yes!"

The San Francisco Opera's website oozes credibility. It is tightly organized, the information at the time of this screen shot was up-to-the-minute, and the use of a tabbed structure to change the view from the main season to the summer Ring cycle shows that the site was redesigned recently.

The Albany Symphony Orchestra website, on the other hand, gives visitors reason for concern. The layout is sloppy, the text in the box with rounded corners (which I don't understand given the square corners of every other element)looks awkward and perhaps incomplete, and worst of all, the upcoming events at the bottom had both passed at the time this shot was taken (on October 22).

The bottom line? When the San Francisco Opera site comes up, I trust it immediately. When the Albany Symphony Orchestra site comes up, I am not so sure. One is incredible; the other, uncredible. Confusion and doubt are barriers to sales.

The final installment in the "Effective Arts Websites" post: Part 5 - Personal Involvement