If it’s your first time designing a company Web site, it may seem like a daunting task. You’ve got so much information to get across but how do you communicate it? A poor website design for a respectable service can cause more harm than good. Good design not only impresses your readers, consumers or clients, it also gains their respect and trust. Would you trust a lawyer to handle your lawsuit if his website looked like it had been designed by a twelve year old? You’d definitely think twice.
The following guidelines should be followed in the design stage of your website.
Simplicity
Let me say that again, simplicity. Avoid the temptation to cram as much information on to one slide as possible.
Start with only including the information that is most important to communicate to the viewer. Then, start adding the extra information graphic flares. Keep a screen grab of your original page without the extra elements. Which is more effective? Subtract the elements that are not helping your visual composition. Often our first instincts tell us to add more information than what is necessary. The most beautiful designs are often the most simple.
Type
What separates the professionally designed pages from the amateur ones is often the type elements. The body text should be a clean and simple font that is over a high contrast background. White text on black, black text on white – you get the idea. For menu, title, and subtitle text consider creating them in a program like Adobe Illustrator or Adobe Photoshop that allows you to individually kern the letters in your text. Kerning keeps the text simple to read and professional looking to the eye. It is far from a simple skill but if you focus on the space between the letters you should be able to improve the elements that you have.
Pictures
High contrast borders on your pictures immediately make your website look more professional. If your background is black and the background of the photos gradients into black, your site will have a much more unified appearance. A poorly shot photo or a photo that does not match you color scheme will often hurt the overall look of the web page. Avoid these if necessary.
Columns
Using columns may be necessary if there is a large amount of information necessary. Be careful not to emulate a newspaper though; remember that the internet is the next step in the evolution of print media. There is no need to go backwards. Many sites have had luck using a variety of different column sizes mixed together. Beware of going too far though, simplicity is still of the utmost importance.
Music, Ads, Auto-play Video
Avoid all of these if you’d like to project the company as a legit company. Music is almost always an annoyance even when it seems suitable. Not only should browsers be able to view your site in peace, their co-workers and family will appreciate the silence as well. Ads are an extra annoyance, don’t forget that this site is to promote your business and not other companies. Viewers will not only be annoyed, they may become confused by the intents of your site. Video is often a great addition to a website. It adds a flair and production value that people can enjoy. But don’t force it on them if all they’re looking for is an address or phone number. Just give the option for video.
Updates, Blogs, New Information
Anything you can do to keep the viewer coming back is always a positive. Most websites of the old model were built for one view to get all of the information necessary, now it is common for a corporate website to be constantly updating with new information relevant to its field. Keeping it updated regularly may not be easy, but if it becomes to outdated then it will appear that your company has gone out of business.
Web design agency in Mumbai will help you decide on the quality and features of an ideal website. This is why before creating a website, it is important to consider a lot of factors and make sure that everything has been taken into consideration.
Using this guide will help keep your website slick and everlasting. Looking at other websites in the same field will provide ideas and allow you to learn from your mistakes. Analyze ever website and look for its faults, it will definitely help you in the long run.