usability: make your address plain text, for the love of god

Whatever you do, please, please make your address plain text so I can copy and paste it. That mapquest map? I don’t want to use that. I use Google Maps. I need to copy your address so I can find out how to get to your business. There is NO EXCUSE for using an image file for your address. You could at least show me the address lower on the page in plain text.

Also bad, though not worse, is that your directions are also in the image file. So I can’t copy and paste them either.

You went out of your way to make it hard for me to use your site. Shame on you. I can fix the problem in less than 5 minutes, and when I go by your place of business tonight, I may offer, because your Directions page is criminal.

(I would show you the page I am describing, but I think you get the picture. Usability and design are NOT separate, never have been, never will be. Code accordingly.)

UPDATE: Now I am even more in pain. You have a Contact Us page. And you have your email address. And I can’t email you by clicking on it, which is annoying, but it is an image text, so I can’t even cut and paste. You just wasted another 15 seconds of my life.

3 Responses to “usability: make your address plain text, for the love of god”


  1. 1 Philip L. Welch February 23, 2007 at 11:58 pm

    Spammers are better at reading text than they are at reading images, if you were wondering about the rationale for the email address.

  2. 2 brianatportent February 24, 2007 at 11:17 am

    Phil,
    We deal with spammers and email addresses in a variety of ways. Our basic attitude is that blocking spam is the job of spam filters, not design, as the spambots keep changing.

    I don’t mind the email address being an image near as much as I mind the physical address being unusable.

  3. 3 Linda March 1, 2007 at 7:57 am

    What spam filters does Portent recommend? What spam filters does Portent use?


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Portent Interactive is a full-service internet marketing agency in Seattle. Check out some of our work in our portfolio. Want to hear more about our services? Email me or call me at 206 575 3740 (ask for Brian Keith), or leave a comment on my blog.