10 Principles of Good Web Design

Your website must be adapted to the needs of the user. Simplicity is the best way to do it when you consider the user experience and the usability of your website. As Ryan Singer, the developer of the 37Signals team, states, users would be eager to provide an email address if asked once they had seen the feature work, so they had an idea of what they were going to get in return. However, registration can be done in less than 30 seconds, since the form has landscape orientation, and the user does not even need to scroll the page. Modern web designs are often criticized because of their approach of guiding users with visually appealing 1-2-3 step steps, large buttons with visual effects, etc.

But from a design perspective, these elements are not bad at all. On the contrary, these guidelines are extremely effective as they guide visitors through the content of the site in a very simple and user-friendly way. The prominent images attract attention. Visual hierarchy is one of the most important principles behind good web design. It is the order in which the human eye perceives what it sees.

Not knowing anything about these circles, you could easily classify them. This is visual hierarchy, a timeless principle of web design, done right. Surf the web and consciously classify elements in the visual hierarchy. Then go see your site. Is the key information that visitors are looking for too far down the hierarchy? Make it more prominent.

The golden ratio is the magic number 1.618 (φ). Designs using proportions defined by this ratio are believed to be aesthetically pleasing. Next, do you see how the image on the right is more interesting? That is the rule of thirds in action. For the past 20 years, Peep has worked in web development, marketing consulting, B2B sales, SEO, PPC and SaaS. My year, 10 ICT students are going to get a LOT out of it tomorrow.

The part about Occam's razor is incredible. Here are 10 principles to help guide the design of your next website: Paths to sections and content on your site should be clear and easy to use. Imagine an intersection with 3 street options instead of 10: simplicity makes travel better. But a key principle of web design is that balance and harmony are a necessity. It's important to know when fewer visuals can improve the entire design, allowing users to focus on the right things.

Sometimes by adding more elements we dilute the true power of design or simply make it harder for users to recognize what they see. In fact, a variety of professionals with different areas of expertise are involved in every important decision when done right. We have outlined 10 basic principles of good web design to address what we consider to be the most critical points in creating a site that generates a high number of conversions. Just like the phrase “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” effective web design is judged by website users and not by website owners. There are many factors that affect usability of a website and it's not just about form (how good it looks) but also about function (how easy it is to use). Websites that aren't well-designed tend to perform poorly and have Google Analytics metrics that aren't optimal (e.g.).So what makes good web design? Below we explore 10 principles that will make your website aesthetically pleasing, easy to use, attractive and effective:A good web design always adapts to user needs.

Are visitors looking for information, entertainment, some kind of interaction or transacting with your business? Each page must have a clear purpose and meet a specific need of your website users in most effective way possible. In general Sans Serif fonts like Arial and Verdana are easier to read online (Sans Serif fonts are contemporary looking fonts with no decorative finishes). The ideal font size for easy reading online is 16px and stick to maximum 3 fonts at maximum 3 points to keep your design optimized. Consistency in website design matters a lot. Pay attention to combining design elements on each page; fonts sizes headings subtitles and button styles must be same throughout website. Finalize correct fonts and colors for texts buttons etc., and stick to them throughout development. CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) would be useful for keeping complete information about styles and design elements. With 100% money back guarantee no questions asked expert web designers think about weight of each element and know when to use moderation. This shows that web designers can rely on solid knowledge center rely on their instincts and consult users research materials to guide them. The principle of mobile-friendly design is no longer an advantage but a necessity as use of mobile devices continues to grow.

Innovative use of design elements and blanks creates less annoying and more attractive design and guides visitors where you want them to go. Blanks buttons and other visual design elements help images and content stand out and prevent design clutter. Cheaper lower-quality products often have busy noisy advertising-oriented designs; website visitors automatically consider distracting site as promoting lower-quality product. But in my experience simple is always better than opposite so we must strive to simplify our web designs. If you have choice between separating two design segments by visible line or by some white space it is usually best to use whitespace solution. Like it or hate it there's no doubt that using powerful font can completely change feel of design; there's enormous scope for brands and designers to create environment visual identity that captures...

Gloria Foulke
Gloria Foulke

Wannabe twitter lover. Freelance social media maven. Friendly twitter nerd. Hipster-friendly zombie advocate. Avid zombie practitioner. Amateur baconaholic.