10 Basic Website Design Tips
Janine Horak (Revision of Sally Strackbein's original article)Follow these 10 basic website design tips to ensure success when designing or developing your web site.
1. Design for the lowest common denominator.
Design your website for small screens and slow modems. Pages designed for large screens may annoy people with small ones, especially if visitors have to scroll sideways to read a page. Even your commercial customers may be dialing in from a hotel room. Designing at 785px wide is a good general guide, but if you must have a wider site, designing at 1000px wide is the next best width.
2. Know your website visitors.
Age and interest dictate whether or not to use multimedia. Give website visitors the option to bypass anything that requires a newer computer or a fast Internet connection.
3. Respect people's time.
Get right to the point. Avoid animated "introductions" or "entry" pages.
4. Make website navigation consistent, quick and easy.
Group website pages together that make sense to your visitors. Test your website with members of your target audience who are unfamiliar with your site. Observe how they navigate your site and make any necessary adjustments.
5. Make your website back door inviting.
Website visitors frequently enter sites from search engines. They may land on interior pages. Always make sure every page has a clearly marked button or link to the Home page.
6. Optimize your website for search engines.
Use industry standard programming and search engine optimization (SEO) practices. Appropriately title your pages, add alt tags to all images, focus content on your website pages - repeat key words and phrases. Use a search engine and try to search for your own business name or specialty. Can you find your business?
7. Use graphics appropriately.
People searching for products often want pictures. People looking for information usually want words.
8. Make website text legible.
Use browser friendly fonts such as Verdana and Arial. Make the font size at least 12 point or normal size. People rarely read the "fine print."
9. Use dark type and a light background.
It's easier on the eyes, and usually prints better.
10. Make sure your website is viewable on all major browsers.
Many sites work well on Internet Explorer but not on Firefox, Safari, Netscape or Opera. Make certain your website looks great on all browsers.
Janine Horak is the founder of Key Custom Design http://keycustomdesign.com a premier online design studio specializing in web development, logo, print and corporate branding services.
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