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The latest principles of effective website
design
Web design is a very general term that includes
how material is presented to the end user through the web. The
purpose of the design is to produce content that can remain on the
web server indefinitely. A website can include images, sounds, text,
and other items that might be interactive. The website design
incorporates the structure of the site to include information,
layout, or pages to have functional features and to be in
coordination with the brand. All websites need to start with a clear
approach as to what they are trying to achieve, which in turn helps
in fulfilling the goals. Creating a website employing the latest
principles of effective website design will allow the site to be
more productive and useful.
Some basic principles of design include balance, contrast, emphasis,
and rhythm. By keeping these elements in mind when designing a
website, a page that is more effective, pleasing, and useful can be
created. The larger and darker elements give a heavier look in the
design as opposed to the lighter, smaller parts. Balance allows the
creator to use these so an equilibrium is achieved. Besides color,
contrast employs shapes (square vs. circle), size (large vs. small),
and textures (smooth vs. rough). The emphasis is placed on the part
of the page to which the eye is drawn first. While it might be
tempting to emphasize many things, that ends up making the page
bland. A good designer will determine priorities and emphasize
accordingly. Rhythm is another name for repetition. Comprehending
patterns is easy for humans and repeating patterns makes a site
easier to understand.
The most important principle to be considered when using the latest
principles of effective website design is not to test the visitor’s
patience. It is important to keep the visitor involved in the site
with some interaction that involves minimum requirements on the part
of the user. Limit the number of times registration is asked for and
even then, keep it simple. With long boring registration process or
too many interruptions, the visitors will disappear.
The second thing to keep in mind is to make the navigation
manageable. One of the most annoying experiences is when the user
does not know where they are or where to go. Buttons should be easy
to locate and well described. If the site is big, make use of crumb
trails that lead to buttons. Keep the site design and layout simple
so visitors don’t have to think. The site needs to be self
explanatory, because the visitor will be there on their own and as
such, all their queries need to be resolved. Since text is the
fundamental element of any site, it is important that special
attention is paid to fonts - their size and spacing between lines.
The sentence structure should be straight forward and simple.
Beauty is not the primary function of a website;
it has to be functional. Design the site thinking of what the user
will look for after coming to the site and go from there. The
headings, colouring, button styles, illustrations, and photo choices
should all tie together. The design consistency shows a sign of
professionalism, whereas things like spelling mistakes and other
inconsistencies lower the status of the site. The user will explore
and stay on a site only if it requires the participation of the
user. Create a site that allows the users to be a part of the demo,
if there is one, or provide a video clip. This interaction helps to
hold the user’s interest. Lastly, leave a place for comments,
pingbacks, or trackbacks somewhere on the site.
In this day and age of competition, if a website is to give a boost
to the business, then all of the above mentioned points should be
kept in mind. A good experience will keep the visitors returning to
the site, whereas a bad experience will turn them away - never to
return. Keeping the website updated with the latest information is
obviously high on the list of priorities. No visitor will return if
they know the site will not have anything new to offer.
For an effective answer to your web design
problems ring Steve at Design Central on 0845 649 0715 right away!
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