Flash vs HTML
Don’t use Flash to tell the entire story, use Flash elements to enhance what you are trying to say.
What is the number 1 function of your site? If its designed to distract visitors for as long as possible from becoming customers you can stop reading b/c Flash is perfect for you. If its a site where you want to convert visitors into customers quickly, then this is a very relevant discussion.
Why, if you have an eCommerce site would you have large elements of Flash to distract visitors? By all means enhance their experience with Flash (Fusion Electronics does this very well at www.fusionelectronics.com) but don’t distract them from their real reason for visiting your site, and that is to buy something. Keep it simple!!
I know they tell us that the Googelbot can now extract images and content for indexing. I’m not so sure. One of the major orange juice brands in New Zealand is a company called Charlies. Their site is built entirely in Flash, put ”orange juice” in the .co.nz Google engine and tell me where they come up? I know its more of a brand exercise for Charlies meaning search ranking is less important, but I’m trying to make a point.
Personally, I think you are crazy to build a site entirely in Flash. Do you want a pretty site that is only ever discovered by visitors who already know you exist? (Flash is still not that search friendly regardless of what they tell us), or do you want a search friendly site (with Flash elements) that is found by new web users and doesn’t distract them from the real reason they are there……CONVERTING!! If you answered the latter then use discretion when making very important web decisions, it becomes very expensive when you have to rebuild your site because “…..Flash just wasn’t working”.