| ign="center"> | | | | material. Post articles on your site, offer a newly |
| As a professional web design business, we have | | | | updated "Internet Special" or provide fresh, helpful links. |
| created and re-created many sites. The "great" ones | | | | All these things cause visitors to bookmark your site |
| have certain things in common. We thought we'd share | | | | as a reference tool. |
| those elements with you
| | | | 7. Clear and to the point. Visitors should have a clear |
| 1. Easy to read. If background colors or images are | | | | understanding of what your Web site is about when |
| used, the text on top of the background should be in a | | | | they visit. Studies have shown that people do not like |
| color that can easily be seen. Use a color scheme that | | | | to read computer screens, so keep your Web site |
| complements and is pleasing to the eye. White space | | | | copy interesting to read and to the point. |
| between images and sections of text make a page | | | | 8. Keep your target audience in mind. Think about the |
| easier to view. | | | | people who would be interested in visiting your Web |
| 2. Easy to navigate. A visitor should be able to find the | | | | site. If you are designing a web site about razor blades |
| information they are looking for without hassle and | | | | and shaving cream for men, the site should have a |
| frustration. The site's navigation buttons should be | | | | masculine feel to it. Decorating the page with pink |
| grouped together. If image links are used, text links | | | | hearts and roses would not be a good idea! |
| should also be provided for those people who have | | | | 9. Provide a form for visitors to contact you. Visitors |
| images turned off on their browser or are using an | | | | are more likely to fill out a form to contact you than |
| older browser that doesn't support images. | | | | clicking on an e-mail link. Always make things easy for |
| 3. Comfortably viewed. A Web site should be easily | | | | your visitors
especially contacting you. |
| viewable in all screen sizes without a visitor having to | | | | 10. Browser compatible. Check your Web site in the |
| scroll horizontally (left to right). | | | | most popular browsers to make sure everything is |
| 4. Quick to download. Graphics and sounds add | | | | displayed properly. The top two browsers used are |
| download time to a Web page. Use them sparingly. | | | | Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator, but there |
| Don't make your visitors wait too long for your site to | | | | are others such as the AOL browser, Mosaic, Opera |
| download or they will click away and probably won't | | | | and Web TV to name a few. Various versions of the |
| return. It is a good idea to find out what the | | | | same browser also display differently. It is a good idea |
| approximate download times are for people who are | | | | to have a program on your computer that checks |
| using 28K and 56K telephone modems. Not everyone | | | | browser and version compatibility. |
| has DSL or cable Internet. | | | | As you may have noticed from the above list, a great |
| 5. Avoid dead links. Make sure that links on all your | | | | Web site isn't about fancy graphics, java scripts and |
| pages are working, whether they are internal links to | | | | animations. It is about creating a pleasurable, useful |
| pages within your site, or links to external Web sites. | | | | experience for your visitors
one they will want to |
| 6. Keep the content fresh. People are more apt to | | | | repeat over and over again! |
| return to your Web site if they find new and interesting | | | | |