Website Design Guidelines

Basic rules

Keep the layout simple and easy on the eye

Too many wild colours or images will only confuse the user and encourage them to leave your site

Use plain language and stick to the point

Value your reader’s time and let them choose which areas they want to visit

Don’t use a range of pop up boxes to display information

Navigation

Your site should be easy to navigate. All links to other pages and websites should be easily recognisable. Make sure every page has a link back to your homepage. Have a friend visit your website and give you their opinion. If your site is quite large, the use of an internal search engine to assist your readers to locate items of interest adds functionality to your site. In allocating names to areas of your website keep them relevant and simple. Don’t go calling the “Contact us” page “Write us”; this will only serve to confuse your reader.

The user will want to get the information they are looking for as quickly and efficiently as possible. Too many graphics can slow the process of loading the pages into the browser. Test this out yourself; your home page should load in a few seconds.

Your visitors must know exactly where they are on the site and more importantly how to get back there in the future. Have a navigation bar which lists the main areas of your website.

Content

You should constantly review and update your website. Make sure you keep prices up to date.

Don’t just have pages full of text. Use pictures and graphics to dress your site but don’t overdo it. Your web designer will be able to help design a well balanced site that will load quickly.

Most importantly, provide content which is of interest to your visitors and customers. Think about what they'd like to see on your site.

Make room for your newsletter

If you have a company newsletter make a space on the website for past issues. Guests to your website can then see a sample of your newsletter before deciding to sign up.

The look and feel of your website should reflect your business. Use the same logo, colours and fonts that you use on other materials such as letterheads and business cards. Think carefully about the image you want to project.

Plan the design of your website

Your website is often the first impression a customer has of your business. It is a great opportunity to present your business on equal footing with larger and more established companies. The design of your site is an important part of creating those lasting impressions.

Website design

You have one chance to hook the visitor, which means that the first part of your site has to be the best it can. Holding pages with 'click here to enter' buttons are best avoided as they waste the user’s time.

Once the visitor is logged onto the site there are many considerations:

• Engage the user with caption headings

• The most important information must be to the fore

• Addresses and contact details must be clearly displayed

• Text should be easy to read - black on a white background is ideal

• The site must look professional and aesthetically pleasing. Avoid flashy graphics and keep the design straightforward and simple