Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Great Web Design For The Beginning Webmaster

By Aiko Silvi


There is a multitude of things that a website can be used for. It can be used as an information hub, a social network for communication, or a simple entertainment portal. No matter what its use, all websites require a knowledgeable webmaster so they can be designed properly. Here are a few web design tips to help you create your own website for any purpose.

If you want to know more about web design, read through these tips below. HTML5 video is set to become the next standard for displaying videos on the web and naturally, you should offer both a way in which users can stream your content through an HTML5 format as well as another format such as flash for those who have an older browser version.

Avoid the use of pop-up advertising. There is not a person out there who will want to visit a website and get overwhelmed with pop-up ads. This often causes people to leave a site, meaning they never take the time to get to know your product. So make sure you have happy customers, by not including these aggravating pop-ups ads. 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.

Make sure your website is easily scanned. Various tests on usability demonstrate that most online readers do not actually read all the content; instead, they scan it for something that interests them. Using text that is emphasized to break it into sections that are easily scanned ensures your readers are more likely to return. Also, make sure to keep the most important information at the top. All of this ensures a more satisfying experience for your visitors because they can quickly find what they need.

Do not use images for your background. When you think about some of the biggest websites on the Internet, they do not have images as backgrounds. When you use image backgrounds, you represent yourself as someone who is not well-versed in web designing. Images as backgrounds also cause your site to load slower, which can lead to user frustration.

When designing your website, you should utilize cascading style sheets, or CSS. These style sheets can be applied to every webpage on your website, and will ensure that the user experience is consistent throughout the website. They are also effective for making quick design changes to your website due to the fact that you only need to change the style sheet as opposed to making alterations on every webpage.

Use custom error pages to make your site more informative. For instance, if you want people to report dead links on your site, either put a server-side script on your 404 page or have a form or email address that visitors can use to report the error. You should have custom pages for 403, 404, and 500 errors, at the very least.

As you have seen, the principles of good web design are not terribly mysterious or difficult to implement. However, too many websites still ignore these basic techniques. Do not let your site fall into this category. Put these techniques into practice to design a website that you can be proud of.




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