You can tell if a site is unsuccessful or successful by its design. Attractive and easy-to-use designs will help keep visitors interested in your site and find it trustworthy and effective. In the worst case, creating a site with horrible design will mean that your visitors just click “back” without even reading anything on the homepage. Heed the advice below to help you design an attractive and functional website.
Let your users have the option of canceling any action if they wish to do so. These actions involve signing up for newsletters or email notifications, filling out forms, or searching the site for different topics or archives. Not allowing customers to cancel actions that they do not want to follow through with is unfair, and it is forceful, which may prevent those visitors from returning to your site or making purchases from you in the future.
Ensure people can easily scan your information. Most website visitors do not really read online content. They just scan it looking for interesting tidbits of information. Emphasized text is more easily scanned and helps readers along, also better ensuring they return. Put the pertinent information near the top of your page. This all leads to an experience that is more satisfying to your visitors as they can always find what they are looking for quickly and easily.
Be careful with the color combinations you use when designing your website. Your text should remain the main focus of attention and should be easy to read. A dark color for foreground text against a light background is often more readable for most audiences. Don’t be afraid to ask a friend or colleague for their opinion of the color scheme.
Set up your website to store personal information that users might need to reenter multiple times. When a user needs to enter their information multiple times to sign up for various options you give them, make it so that they don’t have to enter duplicate info from beginning to end on their own repeatedly. It’s annoying for visitors to have to re-register for different site functions, so work to make the site experience positive for your users.
Do not use pop-ups. There is little worse than visiting a site and being attacked by pop-up ads or newsletter sign-up boxes. The vast majority of users will just exit a site with pop-ups. Make sure your customers are happy by eliminating these pesky ads from your site. As well, if your web host makes it mandatory that you have pop-up advertising, look into a new host asap. It’s not worth the annoyance level they create.
Creating a newsletter can help you get repeat visitors. When you allow visitors to subscribe to your website’s newsletter for updates, they will be more likely to come back to your site. Put a form for registration on a sidebar or somewhere visible, yet not interfering with the page’s purpose. Only send the newsletter to those who request it, or you could find yourself in hot water.
Give some thought to the background of your website. Some sites include complex or patterned GIF backgrounds that can make text hard to read, no matter how novel it may look. Choose a background that goes with your site, instead of one that goes against it, so the viewers will be able to understand what you wish to convey.
Search Box
Search engine capabilities are an essential part of a large site. The best place to put your search box is on the top of your homepage. Shoot for the upper right corner. Users often expect to see a search box in this area and may want to search your site for the information they are looking for. FreeFind and Google both distribute a search function which you can use on your site.
If you want to attract visitors to your website, you need to make the site user friendly and attractive. When you have a well designed site, traffic can be boosted drastically. Yet, if you design your sight poorly, you can deter people from coming back to your site. Apply the tips you read and you will be on your way to success.
Keep personal information handy in the event that it must be re-entered by a repeat visitor of your website. If users register on your site, some of their data should be saved. This makes it easier to fill out forms, and is considered to be very convenient. Developing “sticky” data like this streamlines the user experience, and your visitors will likely appreciate the convenience.