So you are going to create a website. You want it to be dynamic, interesting, and eye-candy. Here are some things that you should be looking at to make you site appealing.
Taglines
First, include a tagline. This is your statement or motto that represents the website’s philosophy and mission. The important part is that it should be the most obvious element on a website’s front page and it should clearly describe the website in one phrase. The reason is that a website has only about 8 seconds to make an impression to a visitor. Without a clear tagline, visitors will not stay long enough to browse the inner pages.
Keep the Graphics Under Control
In other words, do not over do the design elements and graphics as they are misleading. Keep in mind that the graphics should be there improve the web page not just to decorate it.
Use Site maps
If you want to improve website navigation, then the site maps is feature that you want to include in the web page. It also helps with search engine optimization (SEO). What do they do? Basically, they are a representation of a website’s pages and architecture; its structures so to speak. In this way, it can be a document or a web page that lists the pages on a web site; and they appear in a hierarchical manner.
Provide Site Searches
Now that you have a tagline in place, you need a site search component. A search text box is where the visitor can enter their search term. How big should it be? Limit it to about 27 characters wide so the text is visible and easy to use. Moreover, place the search text box on the top of your web page. It been known that users tend to search a website according to the “F pattern.” This means that they start their scan from the top left and go to the bottom right. Finally add a search button, which launches the text search.
Keep the Workflow Intact
A user should complete the workflow on every operation that a user is doing. Let us start with a simple task like filling out a form, or registering on a website. Have the user complete the operation, and do not break these workflows; in other words, do not let the user cancel any operation. This way you are forcing them to finish it even if they do not want to.
Similarly, do not make the mistake is not changing the color of visited links. Users should know where they have been and where they are on a website.
Visitors Prefer to Scan Web Sites and not Read Them so Create Easy to Scan Web Pages
Your web page should be easy to scan for information, so you include titles, bold or emphasized lists, and content. When you have easy to read web pages, it keeps the visitors on your site and reading your content. Forcing the visitor to read a lot of information, may make them leave.
Don’t Design Misleading User Interface Controls
Ok, sometimes there is a button on a page and it looks like it is supposed to do something. Or you have a word or group of words that look like a link, but are un-clickable. So, the rule of thumb is keep the user interface (UI) graphic elements in a format that the visitors expect to see; do not confuse them, and keep the UI controls consistent.
Do Not Overuse JavaScript
Not all users have the most current versions of a browser. This means that using JavaScript and the AJAX technique may create problems for the users, even if web designers and developers can create responsive and transparent websites. This can cause browser inconsistency, and the visitor might not have JavaScript enabled by default. To alleviate this problem, use a form of unobtrusive JavaScript.
Give Meaningful Feedback
Make it a habit to provide meaningful feedback in a website. For example, when an error occurs write a meaningful error message. It can tell the visitor what went wrong and what they can do next.