Design Considerations for Building a Successful Web Site
Contributed by Anita Carter, Wayne State University
for the
Advising Technology Education Center (ATECH)
Table of Contents
Keys to a Successful Web Site
Procedural Suggestions
Design Considerations
Recommended Guidelines
Testing Your Pages
Promoting Your Site
For More Information
Keys to a Successful Web Site
Design With the User in Mind
- Design for the lowest common denominator in terms of modem speed, browser capability, hardware specifications.
- Think about where users may be accessing pages from (i.e., schools and libraries, as well as home) and what the memory and hardware limitations might be at those locations.
- Determine the purpose for the web site (information, marketing, etc.) and design for that purpose.
- Know your audience (students, faculty, parents, community) and design for their needs.
Use Visual Appeal
- Avoid too much clutter on the page and allow for enough "white space" to be pleasing to the eye.
- Choose background colors carefully and check them on both color and monochromatic monitors for full effect.
- Limit icons and visuals to those which are necessary to convey the message.
- Make a visual connection throughout the site.
Make it Easy To Navigate
- Make navigation intuitive with icons and related text, or menu bars.
- Separate navigation from the page content.
Do One or Two Things Really Well
- Don't try to be all things to all people, target your audience and give them what they need.
- Be willing to revise and improve your web site based on feedback from your users.
Make the Benefits Clear
- Let your users know what they can expect to find on your web site immediately upon arrival to the site.
Use Bells and Whistles Effectively or Not At All
- Don't overdo sounds, flashing icons, or colors.
- Adhere to the principle that "less is more."
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Procedural Suggestions
Generate Content and Storyboard
- Plan your site before you begin creating it.
- Map out and outline content for each page on 3x5 cards so you can plan the site organization before beginning to write pages.
- Create a site map for your reference.
Build Pages
- Build your pages based on your story boards and site organization, beginning with the home page.
- Create a template with elements common to all pages then proceed to create individual pages from there.
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Design Considerations
Look, Feel, and Function Should Be Consistent
- A consistent look will let the user know that he/she is still within your site and will make browsing more comfortable.
- A consistent look can simply entail a common menu bar on each page or consistent icon, it does not require that all pages be exactly the same in format.
Make the Visual Connection Apparent
- Icons and related text should be connected.
- Icons that are used as navigation tools should include explanatory text.
Don't Rely on a Single Web Browser to Check Your Pages
- Browsers use slightly different codes for text, layout, pixels, etc.
- What may look good in one browser may be unsightly in another.
Learn Some HTML Code
- Web page editing software often creates extraneous code, increasing file size. Learning HTML allows you to identify code that is crucial and that which is not.
- Simple pages can be written in HTML without the use of editing packages and result in smaller files.
Learn the Recommended Guidelines and Use Them
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Recommended Guidelines
Home Page
- The "Home" page should be no larger that 20K.
Frames Are Not Visible On All Browsers
- Plan for "no frames" versions of pages if you create pages with frames.
- Frames often don't print as would be expected, be sure to check your pages by printing before putting them up on the web.
Use Tables Instead of Frames
- Tables may be used instead of frames to separate information on a page and are more readily useable by most browsers.
- To accommodate "text only" browsers, insert a break at the end of each table cell item.
Provide Consistent Navigation Tools on Each Page of Your Site
- Consistent navigation will make it easier for the user to move within your site and will also provide a signal when the user leaves your site.
Provide Ways to Make Contact With You on Each Page
- Include your e-mail address as contact on each page.
Provide Creation and Revision Dates on Each Page
- Creation and revision dates help the user to judge how current the information really is and therefore, how useful.
Provide Text for Icons and Pictures by Using the "alt" Function
- Text will stand in the place of icons and pictures in "text only" browsers or if user has turned off the visuals.
Keep Scrolling To A Minimum by Using Short Sound Bites, Little Paragraphs, Internal Links
- When possible break material up into items that will fit on one screen.
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Testing Your Pages
Use a Number of Different Browsers
- Use a least 3 or 4 different browsers to test your pages.
Use Different Versions of Browsers
- Use earliest browsers as well as the latest versions when testing your pages.
Test Your Pages on a Monochromatic Monitor to See How Colors are Presented
- The colors you are using, while showing contrast on a color monitor, may be similar in intensity and show as the same gray color on a monochromatic monitor.
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Promoting Your Site
Use Tags
- Name Tag - Use For Name & Description
- Content Tag - List Keywords
Register With Search Engines
- Don't waste all the time and effort you've expended by not making it possible for users to find you.
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For More Information
Web Development Site
A very comprehensive guide to the entire process of creating a web site
Web Page Design for Designers
Emphasis on graphic design
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