Design Your Web Site Like A Pro
If you are inexperienced with web design, you should start by learning as much as possible about the basics. There are a variety of information sources that provide useful strategies for designing websites. This article is one of them. This article provides several useful tips that can improve one's ability to design websites.
Frames are a holdover from 90's design elements. Back then, they were the height of technology, but technology has moved on. Frame designs make the bookmarking difficult on your visitors, and it also makes scrolling a chore as well. There are easier ways to give seamless flow to your site.
Put in an element to search so you can have visitors search what's on your website. If visitors to your site need something specific, they look for a search box first. If you don't have one, they may go to another site which does. Normally, the best place to include the search box is in the upper right hand corner, as that is where most visitors look for it.
Don't force users to install strange BHOs. Many tech-savvy users won't do it. Common offenders include unusual video players, image viewers, and platforms for interactive games. For most standard use cases, there is a trusted plugin, such as Windows Media Player or even Flash) that will do what you want without driving away users.
Page size must be kept small. If your pages take a long time to load, visitors with slow connection speeds will lose interest. A visitor who has to wait a long time to see your information will move on.
Use images wisely. Bitmap images do not tend to fare well for internet use, and some GIFs do not work well with lots of color. Image size is important as well, as larger images may make your viewers have to wait for them to download. Choose smaller images, and use them sparingly to make your site more manageable.
If you plan on having a commercial site, you should seriously consider buying your own web hosting. Most free host sites force you to display their advertisements, which is counter-intuitive if you are attempting to sell something as well. Purchase your own hosting to avoid this advertising hassle, so that you can choose your own ads.
If you want more visitors to your site, you need to design it in a way that makes it easy to update content. If your site can be easily updated it helps you to be able to quickly add new and relevant information. A site that is constantly updated will keep your visitors coming back for more.
Leave out the frames if you want the website you create to be optimized for the major search engines. Some users enjoy pages with frames, but search engines don't find the info they contain. If pertinent info is not readable by search engines, your rankings will be negatively affected. This can hinder any new visitors.
Keep in mind that it is very important to have your website design tested on many different web browsers. Every browser interprets sites in their own way, and sometimes that can lead to drastic differences in the way a site appears to a user, affecting not only visual elements, but functional elements as well. There are a ton of resources you could use, so you are able to find out the browsers that currently have the most popularity. Do not neglect mobile browsers, as they are increasingly used by people of all ages; test to see that your new site works across a full spectrum of browsers.
Try writing a good "About Us" page. Add some autobiographical information to share with visitors. Get your visitors engaged! Give people a glimpse into who you are and why you love web design. Let them know what has inspired you and what your goals are.
When you design your site, you can make some independent CSS pages. This will allow web browsers to use conditional loading. Having these pages allows for easier testing and necessary maintenance in the future. This technique allows you to make changes to your website without a lot of work.
Pay attention to your background colors and your text colors when designing a site. Something like red text on a blue background doesn't work well. And if you think that white text will pop with a black background, it could be a little too bright for your readers. Go with something subtle.
A lot of times when you load up a page to your file server, you cannot find it when you type in the address via your browser. You always need to double-check and ensure that you named the file correctly. Some people literally waste days trying to pinpoint the problem they believe is major, when in reality it's only a simple typo.
As mentioned, web designers that are just starting out have to learn the basics of web design to make attractive, functional sites. There are a great deal of available resources, which makes it difficult to find an appropriate place to start. Studying this article is a good way to start learning web design.