Web-Site Design Tips

It's easy to fall into the trap of using every possible feature on a web page. It is nice
to be able to create frames and tables and font sizes and animated GIFs, but if you
have every possible HTML feature on every page, it's highly likely that your readers
are going to be overwhelmed rather than impressed. Remember, just because you
CAN create an effect, doesn't mean you SHOULD. Ask yourself: what value am I
adding with this technique? Is this the best way to communicate what I want to say?

Simple, Not Boring

Simple doesn't necessarily mean dull and boring. Lots of people confuse fancy
effects with effective communication.

What keeping it simple really means is this: think about how people will be using
your pages and present your information to them in a way that matches their needs
and expectations.

Clean design + Good use of technology = A Good Website
Five Fingers

Making your site easy to navigate is critical. Lots of small factors add up to create
easy paths through your site. For example, one thing you can do is keep the number
of "next step" choices small so that people don't become lost in a long list of options.

Did you know that the average human mind sees five or fewer items as one group,
but when it encounters more than five items it has to divide them into smaller
sub-groups to process them? It makes sense, then, to try to keep your selections
arranged in groups of five or less. That makes it easier for your readers to quickly
see the options and select one.

Three Clicks

Another way to help your website be a good experience for your readers is to make
information no more than three clicks away. One of the fastest ways to frustrate
readers is to make them click ... and click ... and click... and click .. and click ... and
... to find the information they want.

Additionally, when you make readers burrow deep into your site to find content they
often become lost and never make it back to your home page. When people get
lost, they tend to surf off someplace else instead of fighting their way around a site.

30 Second Attention Spans

When someone comes into a webpage they should be able to easily see what
options they have and be able to select one quickly. As a rule of thumb, it should
take less than 30 seconds for a reader to load your page and be able to decide what
to do next. If it takes longer than that, you'll likely start to lose your audience.

That means two things:

   1.Make sure your pages are a reasonable size and don't take forever to
     download. If many of your users are on modems, try to keep the page size
     under 30K.
   2.Make sure your page layout is clear enough that with a quick glance your
     readers can grasp your navigation scheme and understand how to select a
     "next step" option.

Words Matter

Remember your fifth grade English teacher? Remember how she told you that good
spelling and grammar were important? She was right.

The web has far too many pages whose creators forgot the basics. Just because
your webpage is online doesn't mean you can toss out all those rules that govern
written communication. Just because it is online doesn't mean you can forget to
proof read it. Take a deep breath and spend a few extra minutes with your text. Your
readers will thank you for it.

Balance

A big part of good website design is balance. Balance between text and graphics. Unless the content dictates an all-text or an all-graphics site, use common sense and aesthic judgement so that one doesn't overwhelm the other. Balance between download time and page content. Of course you want beautiful pages, but you need to balance the content of the page with the reality that your readers are out there logging on through a modem. Is that photo of your wedding trip really worth a 120 second wait?

Balance between background and foreground. Most of us print things on  white or another solid color paper. On the web, it's pretty exciting to be able  to be able to create textures and backgrounds, but it's also easy to let the background overwhelm the content in front.

Frames vs. Tables

Frames can be a great addition to your site, but think carefully about how you use
them.  If all you need are columns or rows then tables may be much better suited for your use.

If you want to create a navigational structure that will always be visible, such as a table of contents, frames are the way to go.

Frames in Moderation

Frames can be a great addition to your site, like all web features, be sure you don't overuse them. If you feel you need more than three frames onscreen at once, think about the way your information is organized. If too many things are going on at once, your readers can end up confused. If your readers are using a 14 inch monitor, too many frames end up creating a cluttered page.

Learning More

Creating web pages is a continual learning process. The technology and tools are
constantly evolving and our understanding of how people use the online medium is
changing. To create good websites you can't just rest on your laurels.

The web is the best place to learn and keep learning.

If you want to be a great novelist you read great novels. If you want to be a great
screenwriter you watch great movies. By the same token, if you want to design a
great website you need to look at other websites. Take the time to surf the web and
look at the other things people are doing. Look at both the good and the bad and
notice what seems to work and what doesn't.

Think about the sites that you use and how you use them. If you apply your
observations to your work, you'll soon be creating great websites yourself.

If you are not in the top 10 in search engine results then you are not being seen.
To be at the top of Search Engine results can be quite easily achieved.

1. Work out the two key words people searching for your web site are most
likely to use.
2. Include these keywords in your web site Title, in the first couple of
paragraphs on the web site, in the description of the web site and also in
the Meta tags (keywords & description).

By following these simple rules you are bound to increase your position in
web site results. There is little point in just having your business name
as the title of your web site, you will not gain any new visitors this way
as they are searching for keywords relating to your product.
.