In the history of the world, few things have been as popular as the internet is today. No matter what your particular tastes or interests are, there's a website out there for you. And if you want to build your own website, the sky is literally the limit as long as you know a few things about web design. Here are some various tips on the topic to help you out.
Incorporate a tagline prominently on your website. A tagline is a motto or statement that expresses what your business is all about. Using a clear tagline is important because when someone visits your page, you have roughly eight seconds to capture their attention and entice them to explore the rest of your site.
Don't use splash pages for your site unless required by law, and especially don't use a Flash intro. Most people just want to get to your content as quickly as possible, and don't care to look at useless splash pages. If you have some amusing content that you absolutely want visitors to see, integrate it into the homepage instead.
Use a descriptive title. Many site owners forget to name their pages, or name them something generic, such as "Welcome Page." Search engines do use title descriptions in their rankings, so make sure you are as descriptive as possible, without going overboard. Make sure it is usable for your viewers and the search engines.
To help your web pages load quickly, you should compress all the images on the website page. If you have images that are compressed then pages will load much faster. Nothing is more frustrating to viewers than waiting for a 250k graphic to load when it should really only be 20k.
Try the common "newsletter" technique to keep your readers reminded of your services. If you have your clients subscribe to updates, they will have a reason to come back again and again. Track the number of visitors who sign up, and position the sign-up form in your site's sidebar. Just send your newsletter to subscribers.
Keep the sizes of your files and images small. Excessive loading times are a death knell for any site. The larger the files are that must load, the longer a user's load time is going to be. Most users will click away if the page doesn't start to load within the first few seconds of opening your page.
A search engine is an absolute must if your website is larger than a few pages. Put a search box in the uppermost right-hand corner of your homepage so that users can seek specific topics on your site. You can add search functions to your site with Google and FreeFind.
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.
Have clear navigation. When a visitor comes to your site, make sure they can go through your site. You must have clear navigation to do this. Have all important links in prominent places. Try linking many pages in your site. Allow information be found from every part of the site.
Pages of a website are very important for even the smallest sites, so make sure that you really have an eye for detail. You need to make sure that the latest page you have added to your site has the same dimensions and features of your previous pages. The last thing you want is a hodgepodge of different styles and themes on one site.
When selecting a domain name, it's important that you're creative. A big part of web design is having a site with a good, on-topic name. Having a catchy, relevant name will make people remember your website just as much as any design features would. Don't think that a name isn't an important feature.
Join a good web design newsletter. These offer some very useful, free advice and can also keep you motivated to stay on top of your site design. Regardless of the experience level, newsletters are valuable for all web designers.
If you are designing a commercial website, you do not want to use free web hosting. This brings annoying ads onto your site, and it detracts from a professional look to your commerce site. Instead, pay for some basic or professional web hosting, in which you do not have to put up with this.
Talk with your friends to discover if you've missed anything when you learned certain things, such as Photoshop, HTML, or Dreamweaver. You want to ensure that you remember everything you learned. It can slow you down quite a bit if you have to review what you've learned while building a website.
If you are just starting out in web design, use a simple template for your layout, then modify it with your own code. By starting with the basics and slowly increasing the complexity, you ensure that you develop solid fundamentals, which will give you a solid grasp of the fundamentals.
Make your design different than that of other sites in your niche. Check around and visit similar websites. You won't rise above the competition if you create the exact same, or even a similar, website to your competitors' website. You risk becoming known as the generic version of your competitors.
Don't overuse graphics. Pictures and other interesting graphics can be fun and visually pleasing, but keep in mind that those things take a long time to load on a site visitor's computer. Opinions are also different, so what you think is a great visual touch might be unattractive to someone else. Keep graphics simple and site visitors will better concentrate on your products, services, and content.
Build your own website and leave your personal mark on the world is made easy as long as you can grasp the basics of web design. The more skilled you become as a designer, the better your site will look. Make sure you use the tips you've read here when you're ready to design a great site.
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