What I love most about articles that talk about tried and true tips for effective websites is that the fundamentals are not rocket science. The basics of a successful website hasn’t changed a great deal over the years despite the huge increases in added technology, features, and gizmos we can use. Sure those things are great and I highly advocate using them if and where appropriate, but the foundational principles of doing it well and doing it right remain the same.
I was recently reading the MarketingVox article “How-To: 15 Tips for Effective Web Design” and it reinforced my belief that if you get the basics right, you are more than 90% there in terms of being effective. Here are a few of my favorite tips from that article:
1. Use a consistent color scheme.
The colors of your site have a significant impact on readability. Avoid clashing colours that make visitors squint or — worse — give them headaches. One classic example: using bright red or yellow text on a black background, which is appallingly unattractive and difficult to read.
2. Use consistent typefaces and sizes.
Maintain a consistent font style and text size. Pick one typeface for most of your content and avoid deviating unless you are making distinctions (such as between body and header). Small text sizes can be difficult to read at higher resolutions.
Consistency is key. It ties directly into your branding and user experience. If in doubt, go with the maxim that “less is more”. The most striking websites and brands are ones that are easy to use and are elegant in their simplicity.
This consistency can be easily maintained if your site is constructed properly using proper web standards. What you see is not what you get…so that idea of using any old editor to “do your own site” will in the long run create more headaches than it solves.
In keeping with the simplicity theme, the idea of making the site easy to use is paramount. I don’t care how big you are, if the site is hard to use it is a major turn off. I am in love with the Olympics but am losing my mind trying to get the NBCOlympics.com site to work for me. The videos I am yearning to see won’t work, I can’t find what I want, and I leave generally confused and frustrated. They are the only game in town, but when it comes to you and your business, you don’t have the monopoly card to play. So…
15. Use a straightforward navigation system.
Make sure every section of your site is accessible from a clear and simple navigation system near the top of the page. It should stand out from the content. Too many links in one place makes usability difficult for users. Have a third party experiment with your site on the front-end to provide feedback on the flow of navigation.
Remember - as a user, if I can’t find it - it doesn’t exist to me. Be strategic in your navigation and make it easy to use and understand. Always have someone else test it to make sure it not only works but is also intuitive.
Some of the other tips get a bit techy, but overall the article is a good one. Hop on over to read the entire post.
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