#1. Cleanliness
is next to godliness
Too many small businesses are smitten with speckled backgrounds, illegible fonts
and a bewildering throng of buttons and animated gizmos running across their
websites. A simple, clean design will do a better job for you than a site that
looks like a flashing arcade machine. You don't see the big boys like Yahoo
using pink marble for their web site design backdrop. There's a reason for that.
The background can quickly get in the way, so the top advice is to keep it simple.
#2. Get them in
the first 10 seconds
Your web page design needs to be both a stop sign and a fast, effective marketing
message. In 2 to 3 seconds the visitor should know exactly what you website
is and what your business about. Decide what image and message you want to display
with you business website design to the visitor, and design your website's home
page with that aim in mind. A summary of what your business website does can
be very supportive.
#3. The home page
should load fast
If you want to catch them in the first 10 seconds, your front page had better
take 10 seconds to reveal itself. Test it to be certain! Photographs are usually
the culprits. Many small businesses scan photos for their website designs, but
you need to compress photo images so they are small enough to load quickly.
You do this by removing color information from the image and reducing the quality
of the picture. It's a balancing act to remove enough information so the photo
loads quickly but not so much that the image look like an amateur hack. It is
more art than science; a professional website designer will always gets better
results than a beginner.
#4. Choose a navigation
system that your granny could master
Make it exceedingly easy for people to find their way around your website. On
the Web, the system that helps you find your way around a site is known as a
navigational system. The navigation system should be designed so that anyone
could master it. Website navigation tends to be easier to find if it's on the
left side.
#5. Always update
your website
Bring people back to your site by providing important information. If you lack
resources to keep it current, avoid time sensitive information totally.
#6. Consider hiring
professionals to design your website
If you can afford it, your website will deliver better results if you work with
a professional and affordable web site design company, unless, you are a natural
and gifted designer in your own right. If you work with a website designer,
you will need to provide them with a project scope outlining:
Goals for your
website.
The type of image you want to create for your site
An idea of your target audience
The size of your budget for this project.
Current marketing materials
A history of your business and why you have a passion and energy about this
business.
Here is more information
on the art of defining you business website design goals:
You can find an in depth guide to the web technologies availble here: