Website design can be very exciting, and extremely frightening too. Understanding where you should start, who you should turn to for mentoring, and what kind of budget you will realistically need really can make your head spin. The advice here will help you start on the road to success.
Make sure you put your website through the NoScript test. The NoScript extension that is available for Firefox can be used to see if the site can still be read. Some things, like purchase orders, will not work unless your site contains the proper scripts.
Help your visitors navigate your page via fixed position navigation. This means that when the visitor goes down your page, the navigation panel will be locked. This is good for visitors, but also for internet marketing professionals, because it helps facilitate the desired action.
The faster a web page loads, the more it will be appreciated. You should minimize the loading time of your site’s pages. Your visitors are more likely to lose interest in your website and leave the page if they have to wait for a few minutes before having access to the content.
Your site must be simple to navigate if you want to attract visitors. Links should be highly visible and easy to locate. Menus render your website easier for users to surf. Make sure each page has a ‘home’ link.
Check for broken links before publishing a page. The worst experience for a visitor is to have interest in learning more only to click the dreaded dead end link. You can either check links manually, or use a program that will scan the website for you to report links that are broken.
Always check your website from a variety of browsers in different areas of the country or world. What you see might not be what users will see. Research the different browsers that are popular and design your site accordingly. Make sure to also send the site to someone running a different OS to make sure those browsers are compatible.
Make sure your website is easily scanned. Usability testing has shown that visitors are interested in scanning the content for items of value, rather than reading every word. Emphasized text broken into easily scannable sections can help your viewers want to return to your site. The top of the page is the correct placement for your highest quality information. This helps make sure that visitors get the information they need in the quickest way possible.
Alt Tags
Be sure you’re using ALT tags for the images while you design a website. This allows everyone to gain access to the intended information. If the images are links, the tags let you describe the link as well. Finally, ALT tags are used by search engine crawlers; therefore, using them can help boost your search rank.
Make sure you put your website through the NoScript test. Try downloading the Firefox extension and activating to make sure your website is readable. Some ordering systems or other types of content cannot run script-free, but if the site is blank without the script on, that’s not good.
With the information from this article, you should now be prepared to start designing your site. Create a budget, locate all needed resources, and start to draft a visual plan for the site. Once you get started, you can make a website without spending an arm and a leg.