There is nothing simple about designing a website. Anyone using the internet on a regular basis - whether for work or for personal matters - instinctively evaluates each website he or she navigates through, judging each page on effectiveness and style.
For whatever reason you are launching a website, the goals are going to be the same. You want to keep visitors interested and allow them to move freely from the home page without getting jammed. If at any point a visitor feels confusion, chances are they are moments away from leaving.
That type of exit is precisely what you are trying to avoid with your web design strategy. Since you know what you want to be included, you shouldn't have to consider jettisoning different features because of poor design. Make sure you get it right in the beginning and you will have less of a hassle trying to make small upgrades later. These five elements are part of any powerful web design strategy.
1. Allow for smooth sailing. The importance of easy navigation cannot be overstated. Even if your website doesn't knock a visitor out upon first sight, it will hold their attention if they can see everything you have to offer without getting a headache. If you feel like there are too many links on your home page, set up a drop-down menu to clean up the sight lines. Another good move is to duplicate a link which features the best of your site. Visitors will want to end up there anyway.
2. Construct a clean layout. Like a postcard, the home page of your website is ideally a perfect marriage of ideas and pictures. Websites can repel visitors when one or the other is lacking. Layouts which have plenty of open space are welcoming and tend to invite longer visits. Also, remember that certain fonts can come out distorted on different operating systems, so find a style that will translate.
3. Accommodate all screen resolutions. The more content your site has (i.e., for journalism or other long articles), the bigger the challenge will be to zero in on the ideal screen resolution. A layout which can stretch is ideal, as you will cut down on the amount of problems and limit scrolling.
4. Cut down on loading times. One common error in web design involves extended page load times. The goal is not to blow the mind of the visitor while taking 45 seconds to do so. Visitors think of what else they could be doing with their time, rather than why they should stay. Keeping graphics to the barest minimum will circumvent this problem. Unused scripts can also cause delays and send visitors packing.
5. The future is written into the plan. Since the materials you have used will definitely changing in the coming years - as will the internet itself - web design must include a glance into the crystal ball. Scale your codes so they hopefully need fewer changes in the coming time period. A review of the recent past will be helpful.
For whatever reason you are launching a website, the goals are going to be the same. You want to keep visitors interested and allow them to move freely from the home page without getting jammed. If at any point a visitor feels confusion, chances are they are moments away from leaving.
That type of exit is precisely what you are trying to avoid with your web design strategy. Since you know what you want to be included, you shouldn't have to consider jettisoning different features because of poor design. Make sure you get it right in the beginning and you will have less of a hassle trying to make small upgrades later. These five elements are part of any powerful web design strategy.
1. Allow for smooth sailing. The importance of easy navigation cannot be overstated. Even if your website doesn't knock a visitor out upon first sight, it will hold their attention if they can see everything you have to offer without getting a headache. If you feel like there are too many links on your home page, set up a drop-down menu to clean up the sight lines. Another good move is to duplicate a link which features the best of your site. Visitors will want to end up there anyway.
2. Construct a clean layout. Like a postcard, the home page of your website is ideally a perfect marriage of ideas and pictures. Websites can repel visitors when one or the other is lacking. Layouts which have plenty of open space are welcoming and tend to invite longer visits. Also, remember that certain fonts can come out distorted on different operating systems, so find a style that will translate.
3. Accommodate all screen resolutions. The more content your site has (i.e., for journalism or other long articles), the bigger the challenge will be to zero in on the ideal screen resolution. A layout which can stretch is ideal, as you will cut down on the amount of problems and limit scrolling.
4. Cut down on loading times. One common error in web design involves extended page load times. The goal is not to blow the mind of the visitor while taking 45 seconds to do so. Visitors think of what else they could be doing with their time, rather than why they should stay. Keeping graphics to the barest minimum will circumvent this problem. Unused scripts can also cause delays and send visitors packing.
5. The future is written into the plan. Since the materials you have used will definitely changing in the coming years - as will the internet itself - web design must include a glance into the crystal ball. Scale your codes so they hopefully need fewer changes in the coming time period. A review of the recent past will be helpful.
About the Author:
Damian Papworth knows business owners have issues with Small Business website design. This is why so many have basic design flaws. To assist he wrote the book Small Business Websites, advising business owners about the internet in a style that is ieasy to understand.
No comments:
Post a Comment