{"id":1203,"date":"2026-09-15T18:05:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-15T13:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/the-content-compass\/?p=1203"},"modified":"2026-10-07T18:25:47","modified_gmt":"2026-10-07T13:25:47","slug":"things-that-seem-helpful-but-arent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/the-content-compass\/2026\/09\/15\/things-that-seem-helpful-but-arent\/","title":{"rendered":"Things That Seem Helpful But Aren\u2019t"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/164\/2026\/09\/not-so-good-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"Mockingbird sitting at a cluttered desk with not so good ideas posted around him.\" class=\"wp-image-1148\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/164\/2026\/09\/not-so-good-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/164\/2026\/09\/not-so-good-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/164\/2026\/09\/not-so-good-800x533.jpg 800w, https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/164\/2026\/09\/not-so-good-580x387.jpg 580w, https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/164\/2026\/09\/not-so-good-610x407.jpg 610w, https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/164\/2026\/09\/not-so-good-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/app\/uploads\/sites\/164\/2026\/09\/not-so-good.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Sometimes good intentions make for not-so-good web content. Here are a few familiar offenders:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>\u201cClick Here\u201d<\/strong><br>Seems helpful. Isn\u2019t. Tell people where the link goes instead: <strong>\u201cView the academic calendar.\u201d<\/strong> Bonus: screen reader users will thank you.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>A PDF of a flyer<\/strong><br>Looks great on your office bulletin board. Maybe not so much on a phone or screen reader. If the information belongs on the web, consider making it a webpage instead.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>ALL CAPS HEADINGS<\/strong><br>VERY IMPORTANT LOOKING. NOT NECESSARILY VERY READABLE. Use clear, descriptive headings and let the website handle how they look.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>\u201cWelcome to the Department of\u2026\u201d<\/strong><br>Your visitor already knows where they are. Instead, use that valuable space to tell them what they can <strong>do, find or learn<\/strong> there.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Opening every link in a new window<\/strong><br>You might think you\u2019re helping visitors keep their place. Instead, you\u2019re taking control of their browser and potentially confusing them. Let visitors decide when they want a new tab.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Editor Action: Find it. Fix it.<\/strong><br>Open one page you manage and look for at least one of these offenders. Replace that \u201cclick here,\u201d rethink that PDF, fix that heading, remove outdated information or give your introduction a purpose. Then, if you\u2019re feeling ambitious, find another one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Want more? Boy, have we got a list for you! <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/web-kb\/2026\/09\/11\/things-that-seem-helpful-but-arent\/\">Learn about more \u201cNot So Helpful Things\u201d here.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Need help figuring out the better approach? Visit the <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/web-kb\/2026\/09\/09\/creating-better-content-for-the-utc-website\/\">UTC Web Knowledge Base<\/a> for tips, how-tos and guidance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sometimes good intentions make for not-so-good web content. Here are a few familiar offenders: Editor Action: Find it. Fix it.Open one page you manage and look for at least one of these offenders. Replace that \u201cclick here,\u201d rethink that PDF, fix that heading, remove outdated information or give your introduction a purpose. Then, if you\u2019re&hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"more-link-wrap\"><span><a class=\"more-link button text\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/the-content-compass\/2026\/09\/15\/things-that-seem-helpful-but-arent\/\"><span>Continue Reading <\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1771,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1203","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-content-and-layout-tips","7":"entry"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Things That Seem Helpful But Aren\u2019t - The Content Compass<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.utc.edu\/the-content-compass\/2026\/09\/15\/things-that-seem-helpful-but-arent\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Things That Seem Helpful But Aren\u2019t - The Content Compass\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Sometimes good intentions make for not-so-good web content. 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