The Now Rules for Effective Website Design

Nov. 25, 2010 - PRLog -- Internet users are just that – users of a tool trying to find what they need as quickly as possible. They are not interested in getting comfortable and settling in for a long, thoughtful review of your website content. They are not interested in working hard to find what they want either – they know there are many other alternatives available if they just click the Back button and select another website in the search engine results page.

In order to design an effective website, you and your website designer have to implement current principles and rules for effective website design. Let's go over a few of the current rules for effective web design. Sydney Internet users will thank you for implementing these in your web designs.

   1.   Understand that users don't read – they scan. So it's important that your website design is obvious and self-explanatory. Eliminate all areas of question or confusion. Include clear structure, visual clues, and easily recognisable links to help users find their path to what they are searching to find. Your website designer should make sure users don’t have to think too hard when they are reviewing your site.
   2.   Understand that users are very impatient and they insist on instant gratification. It's important to design your website so the content is laid out in obvious fashion and navigation is intuitive. If the navigation and website design architecture aren't intuitive, the user won't wait around to figure it out. Your website designer should make sure your website design isn’t wasting your users' patience because they believe they can find alternatives to your site.
   3.   Understand that users do not scan a web page in a linear fashion either; instead, they jump from page to page, section to section, seeking to find the first reasonable option for what they want. The first reasonable option is most likely to get clicked and when it is clicked, the user expects to see what they want. Your website designer should design your websites with the intent of focusing your user's attention.

As you examine your website for these principles, think about the fact that website design involves achieving a design that is not only pleasing, but also inherently useful. Your website design should deliver information, enable your users to purchase your products and services, and it should build your brand. A website design must be both technically sound, visually coherent, and well written, and that's where the skill, knowledge, experience and even art come into play.

While the underlying technology is important, it's only as useful as the website design that is layered over it allows it to be. All the forms in the world aren't going to help you interact with your customers if they won't click to submit the form. All the jazzy graphics in the world aren't going to convince new customers to click the buy button and submit their payment if they aren't absolutely certain what they are getting in the end. Your website designer has to thoughtfully craft and skilfully design your website. It requires knowledge and experience and more than a little bit of artistic design to engage potential customers, to gain their trust, nurture the sale, and support them after the sale is completed.

# # #

Sigma InfoTech
Suite 46, 11 Brookhollow Avenue
Norwest Business Park
Baulkham Hills 2153
Tel: 1300 78 20 23
Fax: 1300 79 44 02
E-mail: sales@sigmainfotech.com.au
http://www.sigmainfotech.com.au/
http://www.sigmainfotech.com.au/websitedesign.htm