ASP.NET 2.0 Website Programming Problem - Design - Solution

7.1. Problem

Throughout this book I've mentioned that the key to a successful site is having good content. This content also needs to be logically organized to ease navigability, have an attractive design, and offer some interaction with the user. The content not only has to be interesting and accurate, but must also be fresh and regularly updated to ensure that users keep coming back to visit the site. To help us achieve this for our TheBeerHouse web site, an article management module was developed in Chapter 5, to allow administrators and editors to easily manage and publish new content. Although you should try to publish new content on a regular basis, this is not always possible, especially if you can't afford a dedicated team to take care of this, or if your company has no news to pass on to users. Unfortunately, if users see a static page for too long, then chances are good that they won't come back very often, and they may end up forgetting about the site. But even when you frequently add fresh content to the site, not every user will be aware of it. They might not visit the site daily or weekly to see the latest updates, especially if the site is updated on a random basis with no public announcement.

A good way to inform users that some new content has been added to the site (for example, an article, a new product for sale, or a new layout design) is to send them an e-mail newsletter that lists all the new resources available on the site. Many sites offer the option of ...