Web standards refer to standards for creating web sites that are internationally agreed on as the best practices, established by the W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) and other standards bodies. Web Standards are basically open standards which are primarlity used on the World Wide Web. These include HTML, JavaScript and CSS. In order for the Web to reach its full potential, the most fundamental Web technologies must be compatible with one another and allow any hardware and software used to access the Web to work together. Therefore, to lead the World Wide Web to its full potential, protocols and guidelines have been developed that ensure long-term growth for the Web.

How does a business benefit by adopting web standards

Lower development costs due to simpler development and maintenance using more semantic and structured HTML. The site would work with all major browsers.

Lower hosting costs - Less HTML results in smaller file sizes and quicker downloads. Smaller file sizes mean lower bandwidth which will eventually lower the site’s hosting costs.

Increase in usability - The pages download faster due to the smaller file size. This will keep your site’s visitors interested and encourage them to checkout what you have to offer in your business.

Increase in accessibility - Semantic HTML, where structure is separated from presentation, makes it easier for screen readers and alternative browsing devices to decipher the content.

Increase in search ability - Semantic HTML, where structure is separated from presentation, makes the content represent a larger part of the total file content. Combined with semantic markup this will improve search engine rankings. As your site’s search ability increases, so is your potential clients.

Better brand control - When presentation is separated by content, you have much better control over the branding of your sites. Your sites that channels content to conventional browsers, on PDA and mobile phones can be controlled by just changing the style sheet(s).