BASIC DESIGN CONCEPTS

We've all seen the "Site From Hell". It's the site that reminds you of Bozo the Clown on Acid. The Escher drawing dipped in neon. "Pretty, Pretty Pony" having a seizure. There is always the other end of the spectrum as well ... extreme exercises in minimalism. Both extremes hinder your site's visitors from understanding you.

Here are four basic design concepts that every designer can use to avoid stunning your visitors into
apoplectic shock:

Proximity: Elements that are conceptually related should be grouped together so that they are seen as one cohesive group rather than a set of unrelated debris. Your eyes will automatically perceive elements located next to each other as being similar to one another. Therefore, dissimilar elements are necessarily separated. This is visual organization. This also applies to the actual subject matter of your content as well.

Alignment: Consciously place every item so it has a visual connection with something else on the page. Alignment helps us understand the organizational structure of a page. It directs the viewer's gaze, allowing them to follow the flow of information. Randomly changing or indenting edges or "invisible margins" is confusing to the eye. To keep an entire page unified and cohesive, align every element with the edge of some other element.

Repetition: Select a font, colour, shape or texture and repeat it to create unified page-to-page consistency. For example, if you use small, blue, circle-shaped bullets on one page, try to incorporate them onto other pages as well. If your headlines on one page are large and use Arial as a font, try to repeat large, Arial headlines on other pages. This concept can also apply to the terminology or vocabulary of your content as well.

Contrast: Make elements that aren't similar very different from one another. Contrast creates focal points of visual interest and helps the reader perceive organizational layout. Use contrast in your titles, heads, and subheads to make it easier for the reader to glance at the page and understand what is going on. Effective contrast is a critical element of good design.

By successfully using these concepts in your design you can create an effect called "Unity". Every section of your Website should look like it is visually "related" to ALL of the other pages. Consistency is a critical factor.

DESIGN MISTAKES

Here are some common design mistakes that hinder your visitors:

• Changing the order, size, colour or location of your navigation from page to page
• Randomly centering text
• Using many different fonts or font sizes.
• Overusing highly saturated [i.e. bright/neon] colours
• Using more than three different colour families in your colour scheme
• Changing your colour scheme from page to page
• Use of multicoloured, bright or highly detailed backgrounds
• Overusing or continuously looping animation, and other "motion" or non-static elements
• Not using white or blank space [i.e. cramming "tons" of information into small spaces]

COLOUR FACTS

Here are 4 Things you should know about colour:

1) As a general rule, avoid using a deluge of colours. Restrain yourself. If you need a greater range of colours, create different shades of the same colours by adding white or greys [i.e. lighter or darker tones]. White, grey and black are not technically colours and can be used freely with almost any colour scheme.

The more colours you use the more difficult it is for your brain to recognize patterns. Pattern and shape recognition is critical for reading letters. The number of colours you use is directly proportional to the length of time it physically takes your brain to process image recognition. Your brain will tend to merge, blend and approximate shapes and colours in response. This directly affects comprehension levels.

2) Physical overstimulation and chromatic aberration occurs in the rods and cones of the eye when highly saturated [i.e. bright, neon, etc.] colours are placed next to or on top of each other. For example, if you place orange letters against a bright blue background your eyes will have physical difficulty distinguishing the edges of those letters. If you don't want people to be able to read those letters, why use them at all? This is one of the reasons why you need to be careful in choosing backgrounds.

3) The most effective colour contrast is created by placing light or "warm" colours on top of dark or "cool" colours. There are no hard and fast rules on how or how much colour contrast you can effectively create. Your brain however, processes too much contrast as a kind of "overload". In much the same way that your brain filters out background sound or "white noise" on a busy street, your brain eventually filters out an overload of colour as well. This is another reason why you need to be careful in choosing backgrounds.

4) There are no "right" or "wrong" colour schemes, only more effective or less effective choices. Personal colour preferences are universal and typically culturally influenced. In your culture however there is generally a psychology behind colour selection. For example, a site about banking and investment issues that is done in "Barbie-pink" and "lemon yellow" is not likely to be seen as credible or serious, whether it is or not… likewise with a site about clowns that is done in blacks and browns. Think about your colour choices. Choose wisely.

General Advice? Take a look at other designer's sites. Study what works and what doesn't.