There are few things in life as relaxing and as enjoyable as Christmas leave for me.  My two brothers, my sister and our families moved back into our parents house for a week and half of holiday celebrations.

We laughed like hyenas. We broke the buzzer on the Taboo game. We gorged ourselves with turkey, ham, stuffing and biscuits.  And then we gorged ourselves with leftover turkey, ham, stuffing and biscuits.

I even made it successfully all the way through several days without ever changing out of my brand new fleece superman pajamas. They’re so comfortable.  If you saw them then you’d understand.

The Intangible Value of Relationships

But as I lounged around, slept in, and wrestled with my brother and his kids, I began to realize that the time we were having together had real value.  In fact, it was so valuable to me that I was willing to drive for 15 hours from Washington DC to northern Illinois.  It was worth spending $10o dollars in gas and nearly $40 in tolls and then spending the same on the return trip.

I can’t place a number on it.  In fact, I feel like the amount I spent was incredibly cheap compared to the value that I got from being there.  I don’t know exactly how much I’d be willing to spend to do it again next year.  But I know that it would take a lot to stop me.

Those times and those experiences are valuable.  There’s an intangible price that we all place on connections and relationships.  And it’s important to recognize that as we work to provide value at our websites.

I’ve come to believe that there are three primary reasons that people are exploring the internet and two of them are directly related to the value I experienced on Christmas break.

As you look at these three areas, I don’t want you to sit back and think about which category you are the strongest but rather figure out how you can build strength from all three of these areas.  Success won’t come from power-housing in any one of these categories.  You need to work to build strength in all three.

• Education: Many visitors, especially those coming from search engines, are looking for information on specific topics.  They want guides that explain how to do something in a way that is quick and easy to understand.  They want to be educated on a particular skill or on a particular bit of knowledge.  Wikipedia is a perfect example of a site that appeals to users seeking knowledge.
• Entertainment: Many users browse the internet simply to pass the time, to amuse themselves, or to find something to make them laugh.  Many television networks are now broadcasting their programming across the internet to draw in this group of online traffic.  Youtube is an amazingly popular example of a site that appeals to entertainment focused users.
• Engagement: With the advent of social media like Twitter, MySpace and Facebook, there is ever growing demographic of users online who are searching for ways to connect and engage with other people.  People are drawn to sites where the authors respond to readers questions and comments.

Group Reflection:

First, I want to know which of the areas you are delivering the most effectively to your site’s visitors. Which area are you putting the most effort into?

Second, I want to know some specific ideas for how you can improve in the other areas where you are the weakest. What are some actions that you can do right now to make your site appeal to more people with these three principles in mind?