Welcome to Part 2 of the 10 top principles for effective web design for tradies. in Part 1 we discussed the design principles that impact the visitor’s experience on a subconscious level. Here, in Part 2, we’ll cover the five design principles that affect what the visitors actually see.
6. Communicate clearly. When people are online, they want information quickly. Information organised using headlines, sub-headlines, concise paragraphs, and bulleted or numbered lists is easiest for visitors to digest.
7. Use the right font. Generally, Sans Serif fonts like Arial and Verdana are easier to read on a computer screen. It’s best to limit the number of fonts used to 3. The best font size for easy online reading is 16 pixels.
8. Carefully select your color palette. It’s best to use complementary colors on your pages because they create balance and harmony. Bright, garish colors are hard on the eyes, and should only be used for buttons and calls to action. It’s best to use dark-colored text on a light background. There’s nothing more difficult to read than light test on a colored background. That’s why pages in books are white and the ink is dark. Finally, incorporate plenty of white space to give your pages an uncluttered look.
9. Incorporate images. Have you ever heard the expression; “A picture is worth a thousand words”? Well, that’s even more true when it comes to websites. Publishing relevant images will not only make your web pages more visually pleasing to visitors, using your targeted keywords in the image file-names will enhance your search engine rankings.
10. Make it easy to navigate. Just like street and highway signs help people find their way around town, navigation buttons or tabs help visitors find their way around your website. Effective navigation involves building a logical page hierarchy, and following the “3 click rule”; users will be able to find the information they’re looking for in three clicks or less.
We invite you to bookmark our blog and come back often for more tips and ideas on effective online marketing for tradesmen. Meanwhile, if you have questions about your website design, contact us online or call 1800 932 669. You can also find us on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
