The more you know about best practices for website design, the easier it will be to keep your site up and running. A well-designed website is more attractive, more user friendly, and has a realistic atmosphere. It will increase your traffic, and boost repeat customers. Here are some excellent tips for designing the most attractive and successful website.
Look at the site you are designing in many different browsers. You have to make sure that you’re seeing your site through the eyes of all customers. Do research on the various browsers in use, and design your website accordingly. You will want to have a person using a different computer operating system check on your site as well.
Make sure there is a prominent tagline on your site The tagline is some statement or motto that indicates the nature of your business. Using a clear tagline is important because when someone visits your page, you have roughly eight seconds to capture their attention and entice them to explore the rest of your site.
Functional websites work out for all visitors, regardless of their browser, so it’s essential that your website is tested across all the major platforms. Each browser is a little different, and a site that looks fine in Firefox may look wrong in Safari, Chrome, or Internet Explorer. Therefore, you should check how all the pages of your website display in all the major browsers on the market, before turning your site live.
Personal Information
Set up your website to store personal information that users might need to reenter multiple times. For instance, if someone fills out a form using personal information, he or she should have to enter that same information in again when he or she goes to fill out an additional form. This kind of “sticky” information saves your users time and effort, and they will likely appreciate the streamlining this kind of good design provides.
Topics ought to be separated. Separate topics to give each one its own page. This will help to alleviate confusion and help keep your site organized. It will also make it easier for web crawlers to better navigate and rank your site.
Always include a search tool for searching through your site. If visitors want something specific, they will immediately scan for a search function. If you don’t have a search box, they’ll just go to the next site. The ideal placement is the upper right hand corner of your page.
Simplify your home page. This will cause people to want to jump ship early. Be clear about what your company is about, but be concise.
Make use of keyword research. Your customers should always be the top focus, but search engine optimization is still necessary to bring those customers to your pages. To make sure that people find your website more easily, you’ll need to learn what keywords are and how to use them effectively.
Your content should be useful and interesting. The appearance of the site design is crucial, but content keeps visitors coming back. Visitors will come back over and over when you provide content that is of value to them.
If users want to, let them cancel an action. This could mean ordering products, opting in to an email newsletter, or returning to the homepage from deep within your site. Not allowing customers to cancel actions that they do not want to follow through with is unfair, and it is forceful, which may prevent those visitors from returning to your site or making purchases from you in the future.
The types of files that you use for the graphics on your website will affect the size of the files, which will also affect how fast your website loads. GIFs and JPGs are your best choice for graphics. PNG and BMP files take up a ton of bandwidth. Try converting images files to smaller sizes to make sure everyone that visits your site has a good experience.
Put some thought into the “About Us” page. A lot of websites offer nothing of substance in this area, and some even leave this page empty. Make yours exciting! Let people see who you are by sharing your educational background, career moves and future goals.
Conditional loading and independent CSS pages are important when you design your website. This will help with maintenance and testing down the road. Since every website will need maintenance at some point, this will help it be as effortless as possible.
Regular newsletters attract repeat website visitors. Letting customers subscribe to updates and new information can keep them coming back. Track the number of visitors who sign up, and position the sign-up form in your site’s sidebar. Just send your newsletter to those that ask for it, or you may get in trouble.
Available Space
When putting together the pages of a new website, resist the feeling that you have to take advantage of every single bit of available space. Filling every last pixel of available space can produce a cluttered effect your visitors may find overwhelming. Dividing up your site’s elements with blank space, can make it easier for visitors to distinguish what elements perform what function. A proper amount of empty areas is just as important as the amount of content your webpage contains.
If you plan to have multiple websites down the road, then consider reserving their domain names, now. Use your creativity and imagination when doing this. Many people have similar ideas and may take the name you want before you have a chance. We are all stimulated by the same media and social events.
Utilize the software out there that doesn’t cost you a thing when you are designing your own site. Many people falsely believe that they need to purchase expensive software in order to create a good website, however, there are currently numerous excellent free tools on the market that help you to develop a very professional looking website. All that is required from you is a little bit of effort in finding and choosing the free tools that will give you just what you’re looking for.
Try and get some books which can help you be a better web designer. Look for books that are aimed at your level of expertise, so that you do not miss out on any important information.
Utilizing great website development practices has many benefits. Good website design will make your website attractive and easier to navigate, ensuring that visitors read and trust its content. Your site’s success depends on having an effective design. The tips from this article are yours to use as you see fit. Start implementing them to maximize your website’s potential.