Essentials of Web Site Designing

The purpose of creating any website is to encourage browsers to visit the site and make frequent clicks. This frequent clicking makes it a popular website. In so far as a trader is concerned, the sales figures depend on the popularity of the web. The popularity of the web depends on many factors like the content, compatibility, colors and designs used. Some of the major issues which make the web popular are briefly discussed in this article.

Content:

A person visits a website with the intention of getting some information. Therefore, it is necessary that the content or the details provided in the web must be explicitly clear and unambiguous. It should be free from grammatical and spelling mistakes. The FAQs and the answers must be carefully crafted.

Compatibility:

The web designer must know that the site is visited by many persons. Each of them uses different software and program. If the website should work on different software, then it is necessary that the software used for writing the website must be compatible with those used by the visitor.

Normally the software used in the website must be compatible to Firefox, Netscape, Safari, MS explorer and Opera browsers. This may even require validation of the HTML. Similarly, when colors other than white are used in the graphics, then proper link colors should be provided so that the surfer's computer will use the same color or an appropriate alternative. Without link color, the browser may not get clear color combinations.

Graphics and videos:

Many of the website creators use graphics, photos, and videos so that the contents become more effective. Many times, these graphics are downloaded online before the surfer can view them. Studies have shown that surfers will wait for about 10 seconds for the graphics to download and anytime beyond that he may move out of the site. For quick downloading, it is suggested to have small-sized graphics so that downloading is fast. It is advisable to use streaming media so that download time is reduced to a great extent. The multimedia used in the web should have provision for fast forward of the video or audio so that the surfer can skip what is not required by him. By this method, the web site becomes user-friendly and the surfer will navigate happily.

The Three click rule: Studies have shown that a visitor may skip the site if he is unable to navigate within three clicks. Therefore, ensure that the navigation is smooth. For smooth navigation, the links must be perfectly established. Therefore, the web designer should periodically check that the links are perfectly in order and that there are no broken links. At the same time, do not use frames because it may be difficult to book mark pages.

Lots of imagination and forethought goes into framing the website. The success of the website depends on how ingeniously it is planned and executed. The effectiveness of the website is determined by the positive clicks it receives from the surfers.