Seven Super Quick Tips for Beginner and Amateur Web Designers

Web design is a tricky art that combines both the creative and the analytical skill sets to create something unique and visually compelling. At the end of the day, good web design is more than the sum of its parts. Beginner and amateur designers may think that web design consists of finding a web host that’s reliable and simply uploading a pre-designed template, but there’s more to it than that, much much.

In this post we would like to share seven useful tips for beginners to help you create great web sites when first starting out.

Site Navigation

One of the most important aspects of a practical web design layout is intuitive and easy to use navigational aids. Naturally, this starts with the homepage navigation menu, but it should be pushed to the forefront in all areas of a web site. “Cookie crumb” navigation trails at the top of the page look classy and are helpful if the reader needs to quickly go back to a specific area.

Typography

Typography is at least 50% of good web design. Eye-catching fonts that aren’t overly distracting allow designers to do a lot with a little. Varying the size and font of different headers, sub-headings and content is a great way to “set off” different components for easy recognition. It’s a simple tactic to differentiate sections from one another and to keep the viewer from getting bored with your layout. Speaking of which…

Page Layout

A clean and well-organized layout ensures that users don’t get lost amidst a confusing maze of links and interrelated pages. Sketch out beforehand how you want to present your information and media, as well as how you want to tie it all together. You’ll save yourself time and effort down the road by coming up with a layout strategy before you get started.

User Interaction

User interaction and a smooth, non-gimmicky interface that facilitates ease of use of your website is a must nowadays. Sliding photo galleries, jQuery or MooTools enabled animations and actions and other AJAX-powered elements on your site allow for smooth intake of data. Such features allow your audience to interact with the site without breaking their reading flow or concentration.

The Color Palette

Color selection makes a huge difference when it comes to crafting a memorable and attractive web page. An incoherent color scheme that “clashes” looks gaudy and can inhibit the viewer from fully enjoying everything your site has to offer. Choosing colors that go well together and compliment your design is more art than science and can take awhile to get the hang of, but the time invested in mastering this skill is well worth it.

Page Optimization

Speed and responsiveness are both a front-end and a back-end issue. Javascript loading can severely bog down any site. It’s no wonder that the fastest growing browsers like Google Chrome and Safari focus so much on Javascript engines and speed. Remember to reference scripts at the bottom of the HTML file. In addition, PHP and database performance optimization is key to a quick and functional web site.

Overall Focus and Goals

Implementing a clear vision and focus is important as it gives you a rough master plan of how to go about designing your site. Ask yourself what your site is trying to accomplish and what message you want to communicate to your audience, and you’ll have a better idea of how to proceed.
Good web design is all about clear communication and facilitating the sharing of ideas.

Summary

There are a million little tips and tricks available from many different resources online that can help you improve your game. The point is that you don’t settle for the easy option, make your your web site better. You can never stop learning, and exposing yourself to as many different sources of knowledge and inspiration as possible.
In the end, it can only make you a more competent and versatile web designer and developer.

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