Evaluation Criteria: Content Aspects

Although a website might be "pretty," the true test of whether people will really use the website is the quality of the content.

The website should meet the needs of its audience. Who is the audience for this website and what content do they need?

The website content should be high-quality and easy to access. Can the end user easily access the information needed?

Content Aspects Review

Consider the following questions as you are evaluating the website:

• Does the website contain accurate, high quality content (i.e., interesting, useful resources)?
• Is the authority of the website clear?
• Is the content objective, opinions identified, and perspectives balanced?
• Are authentic resources used (i.e., reviewed materials, established sources, primary materials)?
• Is the content timely and current?
• Is the content relevant, useful, and meaningful to the intended audience?
• Is the content presented in an efficient and effective manner?
• Is the breadth of the content effective (i.e., goes beyond basic facts and data)?
• Does the depth of content match the varied audience needs (i.e., levels of pages or information beyond the entry page)?
• Does the website provide resources that go beyond the ordinary (i.e., unique, local, special)?
• Does the website contain a mix of content formats (i.e., text, graphics, photographs, video, audio) to address specific needs?
• Is the content logically organized?
• Does the website contain current, timely information?
• Is the website free from spelling, grammatical, and other typographical errors?
• Is the writing clear and appropriate for the developmental and reading level of the audience?
• Is the content presented in a variety of ways to meet individual differences (i.e., text, graphics, photographs, diagrams, audio, video)?
• Is there quality content beyond links?
• Are links annotated, well-chosen, and organized in a logical manner?