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October 2005
Good web design comes down to doing only 3 things right.
TIP 1 - Easy to Read
The one thing that forces me to abandon a website or click the Back button is web pages that are hard to read! No matter how well the site is organized or designed, if I can't read the content without straining my eyes then I'll leave the site immediately.
I'm still amazed at the number of websites that have blue backgrounds/yellow text or grey background/white text or font sizes so small you have to put your face right up the computer screen.
So what's the best background colour/font colour combination to use when designing webpages? Black text on a white background. Why? Pick up any magazine or newspaper and what do you see? Yep, black text on a white background. Its done that way for a reason - to make it easy to read!
On average its about 25% slower reading from a computer screen when compared to a book, magazine, etc. So when it comes to good web design, give your website visitor the best opportunity to make reading webpages as easy as possible.
TIP 2 - Easy to Navigate
Nothing frustrates me more when I spend considerable time searching/scanning a webpage for links to contact pages or other information pages. This is really bad web design and should be avoided at all costs.
To avoid confusion and help your site visitors, always design webpages with easy-to-find, organized navigation links placed either at the top, bottom or sides of each page.
Think about it for a moment - if you make it hard for visitors to navigate your entire site there is little chance of them staying or returning at a later date.
Design your site to help visitors find what they want with a minimum of fuss and you won't go wrong!
TIP 3 - Fast Loading Pages
Always design your webpages to load quickly. This means including only a minimum number of graphics, pictures, javascript, banners, flash presentations that is absolutely necessary to convey your message - nothing more. Big pages mean slow loading pages and if you force visitors to wait more than 15 seconds, you are likely to lose them.
Remember to apply the KISS (keep it simple stupid) principle when it comes to web design. Good web design is all about KISS.
Take Note: Even though broadband Internet is rapidly growing in use compared to dial-up, you should always design your webpages as though EVERYONE is using dial-up!
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