Important Rules in Website Design

When it comes to your website, extra attention should be paid to every minute detail to make sure it performs optimally to serve its purpose. Here are seven important rules of thumb from experienced Web Designers to observe to make sure your website performs well.

1) Do Not Use Splash Pages

Splash pages are the first pages you see when you arrive at a website. They normally have a very beautiful image with words like "welcome" or "click here to enter". In fact, they are just that -- pretty vases with no real purpose. Do not let your visitors have a reason to click on the "back" button! Give them the value of your site up front without the splash page.

2) Do Not Use Flash Design Pages

Flash designed pages can not be indexed by the search engines effectively and takes a long time to load and more often than not is just a hindrance to most website surfers. Flash design is expensive and takes a long time to create so you will save on costs also. I am not talking about using small flash elements inside your website like an animated banner or logo, but do not construct the page itself in flash.

3) Do Not Use Excessive Banner Advertisements

Even the least net savvy people have trained themselves to ignore banner advertisements so you will be wasting valuable website real estate. Instead, provide more valuable content and weave relevant affiliate links into your content, and let your visitors feel that they want to buy instead of being pushed to buy. Focus on your message and what YOU want your visitor to do.

4) Have a simple and clear navigation

You have to provide a simple and very straightforward navigation menu so that even a young child will know how to use it. Stay away from complicated Flash based menus or multi-tiered dropdown menus. If your visitors don't know how to navigate, they will leave your site.

5) Have A Clear Call To Action

Tell your visitors exactly what to do next. Do not leave it up to them to wonder where to click next, or they just may click out of your site. Tell them what you want. Normally it is to contact you, request a quotation, make a booking, place an order. Do not confuse your visitors with too many options to click or they may just not click anything at all.

6) Do Not Link Out Too Much

This goes along with the top statement. Do not give links to other websites too much, including adverts etc if your main aim is to attract sales / enquiries / clients for yourself. Stay focused on your message and what you want to achieve with your visitor. If you provide too many links to "other resources" or websites, you know what? YOUR visitors are going to click on those links and visit some other website and do their business somewhere else.