Rachel

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Rachel Olson Armstrong

Suzy Bills
ELang 430
3 April 2014
The Ugly Tub Just Got Uglier: Revising the Ugly Tub Website
Be Honest About Your Problems
Admit it. You live in the Midwest, your house is old, your tub is ugly, and you dont want
to pay a lot of money to fix it. But Bath Magic Inc. has a cheap and easy solution for you, a
service that will come to your house and resurface your bathroom to make it look like new. Bath
Magic Inc.s website (uglytub.com) serves many functions for potential customers: the website
advertises the resurfacing option, provides information about the service, informs users about
fixing their bathrooms, and advertises and sells bathroom-related products. But uglytub.com
ineffectively fulfills these purposes because of its overwhelming text, unnecessary clipart,
confusing links, inefficient scrolling, and lack of hierarchy in the title menuproblems that can
be solved to better advertise the resurfacing service, provide clearer information to economical
Midwesterners, and make Bath Magic Inc. more successful.
The Text is Crazy
The websites text is distracting to readers and difficult for an older audience. An older
audience would have difficulty understanding the websites purpose because of (1) the texts
bright colors, (2) lack of consistent styles, (3) large chunks of text, and (4) occasional animation.
(1) The most jarring element of the text is its bright colors, which are hard on the eyes.
The intensity of the varied colorsthe bright yellows and blues, fluorescent greens, and angry
redsis counter-productive. The frequently used colors distract from the main message because
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viewers cannot decipher which points are most important. To emphasize certain points more
effectively, the website designer should make running text and headings black, which will
contrast against the white webpage without seeming unprofessional (Appendix). If the designer
wants to emphasize certain words, use CSS markup language to indicate certain text as strong
or emphasized (Amare et al. 2011, 306). If the website needs color, use only one or two colors
for headings.
(2) Such decisions about text color would be easier to enact with styles, which are
currently missing from the website (Amare et al. 2011, 300). The inconsistency of font colors
and sizes throughout the website confuses viewers about the importance of many points
(Appendix). In order to emphasize effectively, implement styles so the less important
information all looks the same: use CSS to define styles and tag body paragraphs with the same
style (Amare et al. 2011, 306). Viewers have a smaller attention span for internet publications
than for print, so consistent-looking text would contrast more effectively with the text intended
to grab the viewers attention.
(3) Because viewers have a short attention span, they tend to read only short paragraphs.
The website homepage has chunks of text that are long and uninterestingchunks that are
uninviting for potential customers. Amare et al. suggest keeping viewers attention by breaking
up long paragraphs into shorter ones or turning paragraphs into lists (2011, 330). Certain
information is not essential for the homepage; it should be moved to other sections of the website
and out of the way of casual viewers (Amare et al. 2011, 330). To help viewers scan, write short
paragraphs and sentences (Amare et al. 2011, 331).
(4) Currently, viewers have a difficult time scanning for information because of animated
text. The text on the Why Us page slowly zooms onto the screen, annoying and distracting
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viewers. Viewers with mental disabilities may actually get headaches from flashing or moving
text or images (Amare et al. 2011, 323). Replace animated text with standard text, or make
animated text optional by using code to create a button that viewers can click to see the animated
text.
The Pictures are Confusing
The website uses animations and unnecessary pictures extensively. Instead of adding
interest to the website, those graphics may encourage viewers to avoid the website. Graphics (1)
are difficult for disabled viewers to understand, (2) may confuse viewers who believe the
graphics are links, and (3) distract viewers from the websites purpose.
(1) Some graphics make it difficult for the visually disabled to understand the resurfacing
service. For example, the What We Do page has no text to describe the process or results of the
resurfacing service; instead, viewers are treated to an uninteresting, painfully slow slideshow of
Before and After bathroom pictures, coupled with repetitive, brightly colored text. That
slideshow makes the process inaccessible for people with images disabled or visual disabilities:
If a visitor to the web page is unable to see the table [or graphic], it can be quite difficult to
understand what the table [or graphic] is about (Amare et al. 2011, 305). To become more
disability-friendly, create a description of the slideshow and place it next to the graphic if the
graphic does not already have a summary element to describe what is happening in the slideshow
(305). Otherwise, the website is confusing for disabled viewers.
(2) The feeling of confusion because of graphics extends to the general viewership, who
cannot be sure whether pictures are graphics or not. The inconsistent links frustrate viewers
because they must hover over every graphic to see if the graphic will lead to more information.
For example, on the Care Instructions webpage, some pictures of cleaning supplies are links to
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that companys website, while others are simply graphics. Graphics can be a useful way of
linking to information on other webpages (Amare et al. 2011, 295), but use fewer graphics so the
viewer will not need to scan multiple graphics to find important information.
(3) Important information is buried by unnecessary images that distract from the
websites purpose. The Contact Us page has three images of different forms of communication:
graphics of letters, a telephone, and an e-mail. These images occupy the prime spot at the center
of the page, which is where viewers first look when they scan the page in an F shape (Amare et
al. 2011, 296). But the pictures arent actually links to a mailing address, telephone number, or e-
mail address; these pictures confuse readers while pushing the actual information over to the
right side of the page. Ask these questions when deciding whether to include the pictures:
Whats best for the users? Is it an essential, a nice-to-have feature, or perhaps unnecessary?
(Amare et al. 2011, 321). Because these pictures are not only inessential, but also annoying for
the viewer, the pictures should be removed.
The Scrolling is Annoying
What may annoy viewers even more than confusing graphics is the set-up of the website,
which has both vertical and horizontal scroll bars in any browser, even when the page is at
normal magnification. Differences in magnification may not affect the look of the page, but the
viewer is required to scroll down or to the side on any page no matter the set-up (Amare et al.
2011, 333). The designer should reconfigure the webpage so the pictures and font are based on
percentages, not an arbitrarily standard window with scroll bars. Another option for making the
webpage convenient for readers would be, as Amare et al. suggests, to include ways for readers
to quickly jump to specific parts of the page if they want to (2011, 333). Either solution will
provide the viewer with a better viewing experience without frustrating him or her.
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Solutions Are Worth It
The current frustrations of Bath Magic Inc.s website could be dispelled by changing the
font, making the font consistent, being selective about pictures, creating other options to view the
page besides the scroll bar, and normalizing the title menu. The viewer will then be more
interested in the content of the page and more likely to use the service to resurface his or her tub.
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Reference List
Amare, Nicole, Barry Nowlin, and Jean Hollis Weber. 2011. Technical Editing in the 21st
Century. New Jersey: Pearson. 293-371.

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