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By Cindy Penchina
Six: Write for the Web. Site visitors don’t read on the web the way they read in print. Users scan information and then click items of interest to them. Keep content short and to the point on your main pages, but offer more information on subsequent pages for when a user decides to click.
Seven: Design Should be Supportive, not Intrusive Design pages to support your message and goal. You don’t need to fill every space with content. White space helps to guide the user’s eye to the important information that you WANT them to see.
Eight: Avoid Gratuitous Images. Images and photographs should help to support your messages and should never be used just to fill space. Images that move will draw the user’s eye, so use them carefully. If your spinning logo is drawing them away from your message, then you’ve lost an opportunity.
Nine: Real Estate – Location is Everything.
Users typically scan a web page in a predictable way. Usually, this follows an “F” shaped pattern. Starting at the top left of the page, they scan across, then move down the page a little lower and read across the page from left to right, then down the left side of the page. Leverage this knowledge to place content on the page so that important messages are seen in this initial “scan.”
Ten: Splash Pages – Just Don’t! A splash page is the page that pops up before the home page of a site. It usually has the company logo and an ENTER button. Often these pages are built in Flash and may contain music and movement. Even with a “skip intro” button, these pages serve no purpose other than to entertain the site’s owners. There are very few instances when splash pages are helpful. These pages just keep the site visitor from getting to the information they are looking for. They are also a good way to keep your site away from search engine rankings, as they usually contain very little or no content that the search engines can see.
The most important thing is to put yourself in your visitor’s shoes. They are looking for a web site that can deliver the information they seek quickly and clearly. With these guidelines, you can provide a helpful and memorable experience for your visitors that will make them want to do business with you. At this rate, not only will they take their coats off, but they’ll stay for coffee too!
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