• Mobile Web Design,  Web Design,  Web Development

    Basics of a Good Web Design

    The success of any websites depends on the way in which the website was designed. It doesn’t matter how nicely designed your website is, if it doesn’t have the usability and utility then your website will not be successful. Just like the phrase “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. Effective web design is judged by the users and not the website owners. There are a lot of factors that affect the usability of a website and its not just about form but also functions.

    Websites that are not designed properly tend to have poorly and have sub-optimal Google Analytics metrics. Highlighted below are some of the principles that will make your website aesthetically pleasing, engaging, easy to use and effective.

    Purpose

    A good website design should cater to the needs of the user. Are your visitors looking for information, entertainment or some type of interaction? Each of the pages in your website needs to have a clear purpose and be able to fulfill the specific needs of your website users in the most effective way possible.

    Communication

    People around the web tend to want information quickly hence it is important to communicate clearly and to make sure that the information they receive is easy to read and digest. Some of the most effective tactics you can use in your web design include organizing your information using headlines, sub headlines, bullet points and cutting the waffle.

    Typefaces

    In general, Sans Serif fonts such as Arial and Verdana are very easy to read online. In a website regardless of the niche you intend to market. It is always recommended to use Sans Serif fonts that do not have decorative finishes. The most ideal font sizes for reading easily is 16px and range around 3 typefaces in a maximum of 3-point sizes so as to keep your designs streamlined.

    Colors

    A color palette that is well thought off can go a long way to enhance the user experience. It is highly recommended that you use contemporary colors as they help to create a balance and harmony. If you choose to use contrasting colors for the text and the background will make your reading easier on the eye. Vibrant colors tend to create emotion and should be used sparingly. The power of white/negative space should never be ignored as it helps to give your website and effective, modern and uncluttered look.

    Images

    A picture conveys a very strong message and choosing the right images for your website will help with the brand positioning as well as connecting with your target audience. In case you don’t have a high-quality professional photo on hand then you should consider purchasing stock photos as they will help in lifting the look of your website. You should also consider using infographics, videos and graphics since as they can be seen to be much more effective at communicating than even the most well written piece of text.

    Navigation

    Navigation is all about how easy the user finds it maneuvering around the website. Some of the tactics for effective navigation include logical page hierarchy, designing clickable buttons, using bread buttons as well as following the three clicks rule which implies that users will be able to find the information that they need within just a few clicks.

    Grid based layouts

    Whenever you are placing content randomly on your web page one may end up with an appearance that is haphazard and messy. Grid based layouts arrange contents into sections, columns and boxes that tend to line up and feel balanced which leads to a better-looking website design.

    “F” Pattered design

    Studies carried out have established that most people scan the computer in a “F” pattern. What people see mostly is the top and left of the screen. The right side is rarely seen and instead of forcing the viewers visual flow, effectively designed websites will work with a reader’s natural behavior so as to display information in order of importance.

    Load time

    Nobody likes a website that takes a lot of time to load. In order to make a web page load more effectively, it is highly recommended to optimize image sizes, combine codes into central CSS or Java Script.

    Mobile friendly

    It is a common practice to access websites from multiple devices through the use of multiple screens hence it is highly recommended that you make your website mobile friendly. In case your website is not mobile friendly then you can choose to build it in a responsive layout or you can build a dedicated mobile website.

    In summary, it is very easy to build and create a beautiful and functional website by keeping the above-mentioned designs and elements under consideration. Incase you have a website design that needs reviewing, posting or optimizing or even perhaps planning then the above-mentioned principles will be of great help.