Total of 130 points can be achieved to earn our VSDA Web Award.

	Web Design: 40 Points this is broken down in to 6 components as follows:
	Site must have good clean design and colours	10 Points
	Original graphics	10 Points
	Must look good in all resolutions and browsers	5 Points
	Site makes good use of white space	5 Points
	Consistent font usage	5 Points
	Graphics properly sized	5 Points
	Website Content: 30 Points.
	Your site must have interesting and informative content	20 Points
	Spelling and Grammar is correct	10 Points
	Navigation: 10 Points this is broken down into 2 components as follows:
	Logical navigation with Top Page links	8 Points
	Site is not reliant on browser back button	2 Points
	Loading Time: 10
	Does your site load under 15 seconds on broadband	10 Points
	Website Optimization: 20
	Appropriate use of alt and comment tags (no stuffing)	2 Points
	Proper use of Meta Tags and Keywords - relevancy	4 Points
	Content copy of at least 300 words not keyword stuffed	6 Points
	Relevant titles on pages maximum 200 characters	4 Points
	Use of Site Map	4 Points
	Coding Technical Score : 0 to 10 Points
	These points are for excellence in technical design above and beyond the norm.	0 to 10 Points
	Web Design Aesthetics Score :  0 to 10 Points
	These points are for excellence in aesthetic design that is above and beyond the norm.	0 to 10 Points

Tips to achieve a higher score:

Web Design: Make certain that your web graphics have meaning and relevance to your website, your colors don't clash and backgrounds are not overpowering. View your pages as though you are visiting your website for the first time; is there that compelling factor that makes you want to carry on browsing the pages.

Content: First and foremost do you know what you are talking about? Be certain your research is current and relevant as well as being interesting and informative and has good clean graphics. The overall content has to be eye catching and original to make your visitor want to return. There are many spell checks available, make use of them.

Layout: Make certain that the layout of your pages is easy on the eye and makes sense to the viewer. Try to use page justification, it just looks better. Make certain you use the same fonts throughout the website for consistency sake. If a page is long (anything over two browser pages lengths) be certain to have a method to get to the "Top" of the page without having to scroll up.

Navigation: Navigation must be available from all pages and must link to your main pages. There is little that is more annoying than having to resort to utilizing the browsers back button, or finding links on all pages that take you back to a table of contents or site map.

These are important "tips" but be certain to read our criteria before submitting your website for our awards.