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Website
Cycles |
| I love to visit other
websites, particularly those with
themes similar to mine. I almost always learn something
useful. One thing I have observed is apparent cycles in
website design and appearance. As I observed these cycles in
my own case, it seemed to me that there were lessons to be
learned about what constitutes good site design. These
lessons are probably most useful if you do you own site
design, but are good to review regardless.
Simplicity When I began my first website it was simple because I didn't know what I wanted to do or much about how to do it. As I learned more, I added more, without any real plan as to where the whole thing was going. It ended up looking like a house built by an amateur without plan or architect! I have seen plenty of other sites with a similar appearance, so I know I'm not alone here. Simplicity comes from a clear sense of purpose, and I didn't have one. Over time, a sense of what I really wanted to convey and accomplish through my site emerged, and then I was finally ready to re-design the site with that goal in mind. It was great fun and now I have a simple site again, but simple with a difference! I don't believe there is any complete substitute for time when it comes to clarifying your website goals, but I have a few suggestions for speeding up the process. - First, spend some time thinking about what you are trying to convey and accomplish through your site. Of course your website focus goes hand in hand with your business focus. Unless you know what you want to sell or provide and to whom, you are not really ready to start either a business or a website (although most of us probably did just that!). Although you will undoubtedly refine this plan as time goes on, at least you will start the process. - Second, keep in mind that you need to sharpen your website focus, and view other sites with that thought in mind. At some point things will click into focus and you will know what you want your site to convey. Then and only then are you ready to make a plan that encompasses all that your site should accomplish. Your resulting design will be simple, not because there is very little content, but because it all fits the purpose and plan. Even complex sites become much simpler in plan and execution when you can state in a few short sentences what your website offers and to whom it it targeted. Simplify! Priority When I began my first website I read that the highest priority item was to promote my newsletter, so that was at the top of the page. As time went on and I added new projects and products, I felt that each one was the most important so it went on top. Soon I had a large space between my top graphic and the main part of the page filled with ever larger headlines announcing my latest project. It got pretty ugly, as you can imagine (or maybe even remember!). After some time observing this and a host of other "uglies" about my site, I did a complete re-design. I won't say it is ideal, but I think I resolved the priority issue to a large degree. How, you might ask? Nothing magic, to be sure. My newsletter
information is still at the top of the page as the priority text item.
Since this is the first priority, even better would be to install a
subscription popup box so that is the first choice presented to any
visitor. (I have it, now to find the time to install it!) How to highlight other products? My
solution was to add a narrow area immediately above the main text, and put
in it what I want to highlight. You might argue this invalidates the
priority of the newsletter. However, if this area is kept small and always
contains just one item, it will remain unobtrusive yet be readily apparent
as the area for new items. Returning site visitors will know where to look
to see what's new. - First, if the priority of your website changes every week, you probably haven't thought through the main purpose of your site (see above). - Second, the priority of what you want to present on your site shouldn't disrupt the overall appearance of your site. Instead, your site design should incorporate purposeful placement of items according to the priority you have previously established. - Third, don't be afraid to change the priority of your website, but make sure it fits in with a well-thought out overall purpose of what your site is trying to accomplish. Priority! Visual Theme My first website was executed in what I would call naive simplicity. Few pages and rather barebones. After the homepage, I built the remainder of the pages using the previous one as a template. But as I started adding more features and pages, I entertained and executed new ideas as to the appearance of each new page. As a result, the site became a hodgepodge of styles. When I finally did my redesign, I took the time to decide on an overall theme or appearance. My new site took on an appearance that was consistent. Are there some principles here? I would suggest a few: - Spend the time (and money, if necessary) to build a logo that instantly conveys a significant aspect of the purpose of your site. For example, since my stated site purpose is "to provide training, tools, resources, information products and services targeting your success online," I built a logo of a target with 4 arrows hitting the bullseye, with one arrow extending outward to be the baseline for my site name. - Carry the logo theme throughout the site to maintain continuity. I used the same logo appearance in a reduced size on each page, with the extended arrow baseline supporting the name of that page. - Unless the content calls for a different look entirely, construct each page with a similar overall look that says you are executing a well-thought out site plan. A clear link in appearance to the homepage as well as from page to page is ideal if the site lends itself to that goal. - Try to view your site from a visitor's perspective (or solicit a true visitor's comments). To me, site links and contact information are ideally to be found on every page, and in the same place on every page. Although a visitor may not be able to articulate exactly why, abrupt changes in appearance and location of elements from page to page will tend to leave him or her somewhat confused and disoriented. Anything that confuses your visitor is also likely to lead that visitor away from the goal or purpose of your site, and perhaps lead to another site altogether. Plan your visual theme and carry it out throughout your site! Personality In websites, as in life, you are always displaying some kind of personality to your viewers. If you consciously decided to hide your personality from every person you met, you would only succeed in displaying an aura perceived as coldness, arrogance, or indifference, but a personality, nevertheless! If that's what you really are, so be it, but when it comes to your website, you can't afford not to think about what perception your visitors carry away from your site. In my case, my first website probably said "bland." I had very little idea of what I wanted to do, and it showed. As time went on, I realized that, since I enjoy helping people, it only made sense to re-design the site to convey that goal and mindset. What are some principles that came out of that? Glad you asked! 1. Writing style - I enjoy writing in a conversational style, and tried to carry that approach throughout the site. It fit well with my desire to help others. That style may not fit you or your site at all, but I have seen it successfully done even on large corporate sites. It's a mistake not to connect with your visitors on some level, but it can be humor or sarcasm (within limits), a teaching style or any number of other approaches. There is no substitute for some serious thinking about who you are, how you best relate to others, and what the overall goal of your site is.
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