If you want to know what work goes into those mesmerizing, quick-loading websites that always leave you in awe upon visiting them, here it is – those are the work of professional web designers! So, if you’re not an expert in the field of graphic designing and web development, achieving the picture-perfect flow will be nearly impossible for you. Although using appealing templates and themes can do the job to a certain extent, you shouldn’t expect those to give you the best results. Not to mention, the endless string of options available online only leaves you more confused than before every time you try.
There are also basic dos and don’ts of web designs that professionals, such as White Peak Digital, follow to a T to acquire the precise results required from clients. Defying the pre-established SEO practices that a layman isn’t even aware of most of the time is also a big no when it comes to web designing.
Considering its importance, if you’re looking to educate yourself regarding the topic at hand, we have you covered in this article. Below is a brief guide to understanding the rules and restrictions of web designing that play a vital role in executing the perfect website launch:
1- Do Offer a Similar Experience on All Platforms
Your audience may access your website using multiple platforms, from a desktop and laptop to a tablet, smartphone, or even a smartwatch. Therefore, one of the first principles of a good UX design is to ensure your web page is optimized for all different platforms. This validates an ultimate user experience, no matter the device your potential clients use to approach or research about you.
2- Don’t Ignore Your Audience
Your point of view as a professional can be significantly contrasting to how your audience interprets the website design. Therefore, you should visit the finalized version of the website with fresh eyes before the launch, browsing through it as if you’re a novice user trying to engage with the company online.
3- Do Keep the Layout Clutter-Free with Limited Colors
Another important web design implementation is to keep your website’s layout as clutter-free as possible. You have to make your web pages easier to scan with adequate whitespace. Plus, you should minimize the usage of different typefaces since that always confuses readers instead of giving them a visual relief. Labelling buttons and links correctly are also key to keeping your visitors hooked.
Lastly, although it might feel too tempting to use different colors on your website to make everything pop, it’s best to keep your selection of shades to a maximum of three for keeping things visually optimized.
4- Don’t Design a Messy or Useless Navigation Panel
Not to mention, web designers always keep the choices to a minimum on the navigation panel, equipping it with distinct categories. Since the maximum number of attributes an average human mind can remember at once is seven, it’s best to keep the options equal to or below the said number. Similarly, it’s better to use words that are easier to comprehend and remember to make the online survey more convenient for visitors.
5- Do Change the Color for Visited Links
When putting up multiple links on your website, making the already visited links change colors could factor in as a plus point. This keeps the users from unintentionally revisiting a page, making it easier for them to navigate the website thoroughly.
6- Don’t Put Up Links That Take Users to 404 Error Pages
There’s almost nothing more frustrating than clicking on a link that takes the users to a 404 error page upon clicking. Plus, it cuts down your website credibility in SEO terms. Hence, you need to double-check all links before launching the website.
7- Do Ensure the Clickable Attributes Look Like Ones
Furthermore, it’s just as important to make sure all your clickable elements on the website look like ones while the rest of the website seems static. Underlined words that look like tappable links don’t do you any favors and keep the visitors on edge.
8- Don’t Keep Your Visitors on Wait for More Than 6 Seconds
The attention span of a potential client visiting your site is indeed relatively short. Therefore, if your website can’t load in the first six seconds, they’ll likely think about leaving your web page sooner rather than later. Moreover, research proves that ten seconds is usually the threshold limit for keeping your user’s attention focused on your website before they eventually give up and move elsewhere.
9- Do Open Internal Links on New Tabs
Another excellent SEO practice is to ensure each internal link on your website opens on another tab to show its content rather than taking you off the web page you were initially scrolling through.
10- Don’t Let the Promotional Content Crowd Your Website
Promotional content that overly crowds your webpage irritates the users into leaving your site. After that, there’s close to no hope in getting those potential clients back. Therefore, it’s best to preview your website before launch and analyze whether the promotional content is overwhelming your website’s entire layout.
Bonus Point: Don’t Auto-Play Videos on Your Website
While equipping your website with videos increases its SEO, putting them on auto-play frustrates new visitors more than anything. This feature may even force them to look for the services you provide elsewhere to ensure themselves a comforting online experience.
Our Final Verdict
When potential clients interact with websites, they want to establish a connection with, they can’t help but expect a smooth and user-friendly experience. Moreover, when you fail to deliver, they don’t wait before moving on and giving your competition a chance instead. Lo let the professionals like White Peak Digital handle the web design process for you, so you don’t have to deal with any unnecessary hassle or a long list of lost clients afterwards!