When I taught my first web site workshops four years ago, all people wanted to talk about were Java applets, Shockwave plug-ins and other technographic gewgaws sure to make the web user go "Wow!" If I talked about the importance strategic messages, integrated links, or – heaven forbid – the active voice, most people in attendance would nod their heads and issue a polite yet dubious look that said. "You poor, passé dweeb."

But at a presentation I gave for IABC/Vancouver two years ago, I discovered with glee that the tide was decidedly changing. My realization came when I was discussing the importance of screens forming quickly and suggested that well-designed pages are those that take no more than 20 seconds to jell. A couple of web designers in the room became agitated and argued that no web page worth its salt could meet that "narrow" standard.

Rather than support this theory, though, as had often happened at past workshops, the rest of the room began to murmur in apparent discontent. Finally, a woman said, "I disagree. As a frequent user of the web, I get frustrated waiting for these complex graphics to come up. The information on a web site is more important to me than the pictures." At that, the murmuring intensified until another young woman raised her hand and identified herself as a representative of one of the city’s most prestigious design firms.

She put the matter to rest in the eyes of most of the other communicators in the room when she said, "This week, my firm’s management issued a mandate that all of the web pages we design jell in nine seconds or less. It’s our belief that most people who are using the web are going there for information, not entertainment.

"Today, savvy web and intranet editors fully appreciate the fact that although solid design is important to effective online communication, it’s substantive content, not superficial artistry, that drives a site’s success. Interest is crafting copy that helps people quickly find information, perform tasks and grasp ideas while they are online is at an all-time high.