An extension of who you are... WEB DESIGN An extension of who you are...

WEBSITE DESIGN First and foremost: look for something that has WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) interface set-up and is ready to go Templates are good, but being able to customize the design so that it is appealing to your audience is ideal Start by looking at four main user-centric questions that should be answered in the first few seconds when a user arrives at the site

THE BIG FOUR FOR WEBSITES: What is this? What can I do here? What do they have here? Why should I be here and not somewhere else?

THE BIG FOUR FOR WEBSITES: WHAT IS THIS? What clues your audience to what you are all about? Clear logo or photo A tagline that tells users what the site is Make sure the look and feel of the website helps clue readers in A government site looks different than a blog A news site looks different than a retail site Think about what you want to communicate to the user by the look and feel of the site

THE BIG FOUR FOR WEBSITES: WHAT CAN I DO HERE? Is it obvious? Give clues about what’s clickable Keep like items with like Help the reader decide where to go first Make sure navigation is obvious and easy to use

THE BIG FOUR FOR WEBSITES: WHAT DO THEY HAVE HERE? Be blatantly honest about who you are and what you are doing Be incredibly obvious as well Make sure they understand the navigation keys

THE BIG FOUR FOR WEBSITES: WHY SHOULD I BE HERE AND NOT SOMEWHERE ELSE? The homepage should have the latest information All timely items should be on the homepage Links to other areas of interest should be obvious They call it a landing page for a reason - make them want to look deeper - tease your own content

WORKING ON DESIGN AND AESTHETICS WHITE SPACE = GOOD THING Leave room between elements -- they need room to breathe and stand out People comprehend better when there is more white space and less clutter Looks cleaner and more professional

WORKING ON DESIGN AND AESTHETICS PHOTOS AND ART = VISUAL INTEREST Everyone loves to see pictures Pictures can establish dominance (letting the readers know what is important) and a hierarchy of importance The bigger the photo, the more important the story Be sure to have a clear dominant image and draw in the user

WORKING ON DESIGN AND AESTHETICS FONTS -- There are literally millions of them for free, but….. Make sure you know why you are using them Make sure they are helping your reader and not discouraging them Google fonts -- free & offer suggestions for fonts that flow well together Body type - SERIF (with the dashes) Display type (headlines, etc.) - SANS SERIF

EDITORIAL CONTENT AND ADS MAKE SURE YOUR READER CAN DIFFERENTIATE THE TWO Follow the current trends in advertising placement Billboards also called banner ads are placed across the top or bottom of a website Side rails smaller ads on one side of the website

ONCE YOU DESIGN AND PUBLISH YOUR SITE: TEST TEST TEST TEST TEST TEST TEST TEST TEST TEST Test it using all browsers Test it using mobile Test it using tablet Test it using different operating systems You will likely find bugs after a launch or a redesign

An extension of who you are... WEB DESIGN An extension of who you are...