Great Websites use Simple Words

I often visit websites and find different words than i might expect to see in menu's to describe simple tasks or action points.

There are a lot of examples but lets look at a common one.

Words like "Explore" i am seeing more often than i like. Maybe i am just a little critical, but i personally do not want to explore anything. This indicates to me i have time to look around and be surprised by things i might find. Like most people who are busy, i do not. I just want something to indicate to me where things are or how to find them.

Here is a newly emerging word, "Examine". Examine conjures up the idea that i am critiquing the website or product as if i was either an inspector or a reviewer, which i am not. Or that there is a problem with the site and that i need to examine it to find out why. Yes there is a problem mr web owner... let me repeat myself again; I just want something to indicate to me where things are or how to find them.

Someone said to me when i raised this in a discussion over a website sometime ago. "It is not an issue Dean, people know what these words are and they will work out that they need to use this to find things..".

My response:

Nobody wants to work things out, not unless they do it for a living or have alot of time. Least of all when they are in a hurry on a website. Granted the words you talk about are not complex, but if we talk about MOST people MOST often, we will soon find in testing this that most people will not recognise these words or associate them easily or quickly (in a glance) with finding things on a website. Maybe "Explore" you may get away with if your a travel site and people have more time than usual. But why use this word when there is one word more commonly used and understood?

"What, you mean Search?.. thats so out dated."

Look at it another way, take for instance that most cultures are now learning English and use this as their second or third language. Their vocabulary is limited and so using words like "Search" that is repeated across the globe on MOST sites, means they are likely to know what it does. People who have moved to live in here in New Zealand, Australia or even in the USA are having to make English their first language so that they fit-in and get jobs. They are also limited... and so "Search" is something they might understand quicker because the word describes itself well.

If you were to take a bet on which word most people would use first, why would you gamble your viewers on the word "Explore" if there was a better word called "Search"? If you own a Hotel or an Island Resort and viewers want to see your accommodation... use the word "Accommodation" and not the word "Shelter"!

When online use words we all understand and differentiate by your offerings not by confusing your viewers. Using words because they are common is not going to make you look outdated if your helping your customers get to your offering easily. Change for change sake is not helpful to the viewer and it only wastes the customers money.