Is It Time To Validate Your Web Pages?

To validate your web pages means that the code behind what you see when you visit a web site page has been written correctly. Then your page will be in a format that is viewable to anyone in the entire world, no matter what browsing program they are using. And we all want our sites to be viewable!

To see what the code behind a page looks like, using Internet Explorer (IE), go to the web, click on View, then click on Source or something similar in the drop down box.

I’ve looked at my web site statistics and viewers come to my site with 8 different browser program. The most popular is Internet Explorer, but there are many others, like Opera, Foxfire, etc. Chances are very high that your site passes the Internet Explorer viewing test because that program is very forgiving. It takes into account and for users of IE, it temporarily “fixes” more coding errors than any other program available.

BUT with a just one little coding error your website may look very strange to a viewer or even worse, someone who visits might receive the dreaded Error Page message.

Many HTML code websites correctly or include a programs called “tidy” to check each page for errors. Since I code my websites by hand, the chances of me making an error are higher than if you used a program like Dream Weaver to create your site. So I do my best to remember to validate my code using software like HTML Kit or CSE Lite both of which include a “tidy” and “spell check” program.

However, if you don’t have a validation program, you can go directly to the source of who determines what code is the most updated code and what code should look like in general. It’s The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) who develops and upgrades it all. This no-cost service is located online at http://validator.w3.org/ It’s easy to
use but if you don’t know how to fix the errors, it’s best left to your web master or web diva. You can also see if any of the links on a page are broken (don’t work at all), too.

When you hire someone to update or create your next web site, make sure that they validate each page. And if they don’t know what that means, which is a very scary thought to me if they’re proficient in web design, send them this article!

A less detailed version of this tip appeared in the 2007 edition of Electronic Retailer Magazine.

©2013 Maria Marsala guides independent financial advisors to reach their 5-year business and personal goals in 24 months. She is a business coach, speaker, and a former Wall Street Trader. Named one of the Top 30 International Coaching Gurus in 2011, Maria has been recognized as a thought leader whose ideas have been published in Financial Planning Magazine, RIA Biz, Advisor Max, Dow Jones, The Street, Entrepreneur Magazine, and numerous books, trade journals, and magazines. She has authored four business-building workbooks including, Attracting Clients You Love Working With: 6 Steps to a Profitable Client Base. Did you find this article thought provoking? Get more delivered directly to your inbox every two weeks by signing up at