What are the key skills in the website? What are the pitfalls? Here, the world's leading website design experts share their secrets with you: tips for making your website interesting, what to avoid, what tools and software to use, and the websites they love and hate.
01 Clarify the content
If you want to be a website designer and want to build a website, you should first consider the content of the website, including website functions and what your users need. . Your entire design should be centered around these aspects.
02 Capture users
If users cannot quickly enter your website, or the operation is not convenient, the website design will fail. Don’t disappoint users by switching to your competitor’s website.
03 Optimize content
Content is the core. About two years ago, a corporate website looked like an advertising brochure. To make matters worse, the website used a lot of images that seemed to take centuries to download. The Chanels website (www.channels.co.uk) is successful in some aspects of its design, but it is too sparse in content and takes too long to find what you are looking for, so it cannot be considered a successful website.
04 Fast Downloads
There is nothing worse than a page that takes a long time to download. As a rule of thumb, a standard web page should be no larger than 60K and should take 30 seconds to load over a 56K modem. Some designers say that web pages should load within 15 seconds.
05 Website Upgrade
Always pay attention to the operating status of the website. A host with good performance may run slowly as the number of visitors increases. However, if you don't want to lose visitors, be sure to plan your upgrades carefully.
06 Adhere to the basic principles
Even if you don’t understand HTML language, you only need to buy a copyrighted WYSIWYG web design tool, such as Adobe PageMill or Microsoft FrontPage Express, You can create a website that looks reasonable. However, by design, these packages slowed down the site even though they did not require HTML. In order to successfully design a website, you must understand how HTML works. Most website designers suggest that newbies on the Internet should find answers from books about HTML and use Notepad to create web pages.
07 Learn HTML
Using HTML to design a website can control the entire design process. However, if you are just new to website design, you should look for a software package that allows you to modify HTML. HomeSite4 is a great web design tool. During the design process, HomeSite4 can help you learn HTML. It also allows you to switch to WYSIWYG mode so you can preview your site before sending it to the web.
08 Use a pen to draw the framework of a website
The sage said: The pen is more powerful than the sword. Before using a computer, use a pen to draw the framework of a website, showing the interrelationship of all web pages. Plan how your users will navigate your site in the least amount of time.
09 "You can never find a good solution on a computer." ——Expert Advice
10 Site Map
Many designers put their site map on the website, but this approach does more harm than good. The vast majority of visitors go online looking for specific information and have no interest in how your website works. If you feel like your website needs a map, it's likely that you need to improve your navigation and toolbars.
11 “Keep your eyes open and notice everything.”
“The best inspiration can come from looking at the most irrelevant things. Look at the structure and structure of a site Design. Understand the key elements of site structure and make sure your design is centered around site navigation." - Expert Advice
12 Click Rule
Heard about the 3-click rule? ? For small websites, no piece of information on your homepage requires more than 3 clicks. For large sites, use navigation and toolbars to improve operation.
13 Use of Special Fonts
Although you can use special fonts in your HTML, it is impossible to predict what your visitors will see on their computers. What. A page that looks great on your computer may look terrible on a different platform. Some website designers like to use custom fonts, which allow you to use special fonts, but still require some workarounds in case the font you choose doesn't display on your visitors' computers. Cascading style sheets (CSS) help solve these problems, but only the latest browsers support CSS.
14 "Use simple and realistic naming conventions." - Expert advice
15 Check for typos
Good spelling is an important skill in life . But unfortunately, many designers lack this skill. Make sure you spell correctly and pay special attention to common typos.
16 Avoid long text pages
Having many text-only pages on a site is tedious and wastes the potential of the Web. If you have a large number of text-based documents, they should be placed as files in Adobe Acrobat format so that your visitors can read them offline.
17 Don’t use scroll bars
People hate using scroll bars online. The Trouble website (www.Trouble.co.uk) is a classic example of a poorly designed website. It is based on a floating architecture, and in order to read all the text, the viewer has to use the scroll bar.
18 Experts’ Favorite Web Design Tools
1.Adobe Photoshop
2.Macromedia Flash
3.Adobe Illustrator
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4.Adobe ImageRead
5.Dreamweaver
6.Macromedia Fireworks
7. Allaire Homesites
8. Microsoft Notepad
9. Macromedia Director
10. Lightwave
11. Macromedia Freehand
12. Others: Adobe Acrobat Exchange, Allaire ColdFusion, BBEdit, HTML Validator, etc.
19 Website Introduction
You should have a very clear website introduction, telling visitors what your website can provide, so that visitors can find what they want. However, many designers fail to do this. Effective navigation and search tools make it easy for people to find useful information, which is important to visitors. Tell your visitors that you have exactly the information they want.
20 “Once a website is launched, the strengths and weaknesses of the design are exposed to the world. There is no way you can learn more than from your own mistakes, listening to other people’s suggestions, and user feedback. Stuff." - Expert Advice
21 Flashing is a headache
Using a logo can draw your visitors' attention to a specific section of your homepage, but it also distracts your visitors. Headache. If you want to keep visitors coming back to your site, use this method sparingly.
22 Background color
Background color can also cause some problems and may make the web page difficult to read. You should stick to white backgrounds and black text, and you should also stick to universal fonts.
23 Forward and Backward Buttons
Forcing users to use the Forward and Backward buttons should be avoided. Your design should enable users to find what they are looking for quickly. Most good sites have the same navigation bar at the same location on every page, allowing viewers to access any part of the site from every page.
24 “Stick to your beliefs. Follow the rules to the letter. Avoid taking things for granted.
Never stop learning. ” ——Expert Advice
25 Click Counter
Don’t be tempted to consider placing a prominent click counter on your website. You design your website to provide visitors with Serve instead of promoting something you think is important. Most viewers think counters are meaningless, they can be easily faked, and viewers don't want to see ads. You're better off showing how popular your site is. Provide a link to display access logs.
26 Don’t use frames
Like counters, frames are increasingly popular on most websites on the left side of the screen. There is a frame. But the designers immediately discovered that there are many problems when using frames. It is almost impossible to display the entire website without a 17-inch screen. The frame also makes it impossible to bookmark the personal homepage of the website. Perhaps more importantly, search engines are often confused by frames and cannot list your site.
27 Remove images
Even if the image feature is removed in the browser, it is still necessary. Ensure that visitors get satisfactory results on your website. For visitors who use ISDN connections and turn off the image function, you can also get good page loading performance by providing additional links and using alternatives at the bottom of the page. Use text, not images to satisfy your visitors
28 Reuse images
Some websites miss the opportunity to use better techniques by using lots of non-repetitive images. When creating a logo, it's a good idea to use the same images multiple times on a web page, and once they're loaded, subsequent reloads are fast
29 Avoid using images that are too large.
Don’t use images that span the entire screen. Preventing visitors from scrolling to the right of the screen is a good tip.
30 “Avoid using show-off techniques. . ”——Expert Advice
31 Choose to use Flash animation
Many visitors who use slower computers find that animated icons can easily exhaust system resources and make the operation of the website cumbersome. Difficulty, therefore, users should be given an option to skip using Flash animations
32 Use Flash plug-ins as little as possible
Although many Web designers believe that Flash is powerful, and Netscape5. 0 will support Flash, and there is no need to download any plug-ins when using it. However, it is best to cancel the idea of ??using Flash for each interface.
33 Let users preview small images first.
If If you have to place large images on your website, it's best to use Thumbnails software to display a preview of a smaller version of the image, so users don't have to waste money and time downloading large images they don't want to see.
34 Animation and content should be organically integrated
Make sure the animation is related to the content. They should be integrated with the web page, not just a simple accumulation of things produced by Macromedia Director and others. .
35 Use sound with caution
The use of sound should also be vigilant. Inline sound is another forbidden area for web designers, because excessive use of sound will cause download speed to be very high. It's slow and doesn't bring much benefit to the viewer. It may be fun to hear the mouse sound the first time, but it will definitely be annoying after a few times. You should carefully consider what the sound will do to you.
36 Use Java and AxtiveX less
Java and AxtiveX should be used as little as possible on web pages because not every browser needs to use it, only those early versions of Netscape and Explorer. Only users who need it need it. In addition, Mac also has problems when handling Java. Excessive use of Java will cause Mac to crash.
37 Designing a Successful Website
www.bmw.co.uk – Great Content and Relevance
www.yugop.com – Graphic Download Soon
www.comicrelief.org.uk - Simple and clear design
www.dreamcast-europe.com www.newsunlimited.co.uk www.newbeetle.com www.swoon .com www.viaduct.co.uk
38 Use plug-ins with caution
In web design, if you rely on some special plug-ins, it will reduce the attractiveness of the website. If the visitor does not have the requested plug-in, he will have to go to another site to download it, so the visitor may not return.
39 Use well-known plug-ins
If there is sound or video on the website, make sure that users can hear or see it by using a well-known plug-in. Many sites use QuickTime, RealPlay and Shockwave plug-ins. Because, many visitors are not willing to waste a lot of time and money to download plug-ins that may only be used once.
40 Use advanced technology
Keep up with new technologies. Advances in web technology will never stop, so take some time to research new products and develop technologies.
41 Create your own images and sounds
Use images and sounds that you create yourself or download from a commercial website. When making a business website, enough money should be spent on creating graphics to enhance the company's promotion.
42 “Whether it’s a game, image, animation, or movie, thinking about what you like about design will inspire you to create new and better websites.” ——Expert Advice
43 Platform Compatibility
For the sake of users, you must test your website on at least one PC and one Mac to see how compatible it is.
44 Use software analysis tools to find errors
Use software analysis tools to check HTML. The software analysis tool Doctor HTML can help check for any problems in HTML. If you have many web pages to check, you can use software analysis tools. You can find more effective HTML tools at www.weblint.org/validation.html.
45 Avoid wrong links
The website may have links to other useful sites. However, if you have links on your pages, be sure to check them frequently to make sure they are valid. There may be many sites to link to, but don’t link to sites that have nothing to do with your content.
46 Give your audience something mature
If the site is not finished, don’t send it to the Web. All good websites are done behind the scenes before being published.
47 Register your website on a search engine
The chances of anyone discovering your website are slim unless you register your website on a major search engine.
48 Design a message board
Visitors are willing to spend time on a good website, so it is best to have a message board, which can encourage visitors to return to your website again , also helps to expand the content of the website.
49 Test the website
Before your website is officially launched, useful testing must be carried out. Use the latest software when designing your website, but don't forget that people don't use the latest browsers, so take care of older browsers. Also test all links and navigation toolbars when uploading your site.
50 “Test the website you design as many times as you can until you can’t discover anything new.” ——Expert Advice
51 Demonstrate the upcoming website
Have someone demo the site before it goes live. During the demo, people will tell you whether the website you designed is easy to use.
52 Animation embellishment
Use only one animation at most on a web page
53 “Tilt buttons don’t look good, so it’s best not to use them.” ——Expert Advice
54 Content Organization
Before you start creating a new web page, carefully consider the organization of your website content. Decide what content you want your visitors to browse, and then design the navigation system.
55 "Long live the blank space"
Be careful to leave blank spaces. Don’t clutter your web page with images, text, and unnecessary animated GIFs, which should be avoided in your design even if there is enough space.
56 “Use white space to attract attention. In order to attract attention, web designers use various methods, such as flashing, rotating, etc., but using white space will attract more attention.” ——Expert Tips
57 Image Compression
To keep images small, use a program like GIF Wizard, which automatically compresses images. Declare the size of the image first. It is best to specify the image size attribute in detail before the image is displayed. You can save this attribute in the IMG tag. This can make web pages appear smooth because the browser can display the entire web page on the screen before the image is downloaded.
58 Badly Designed Websites
www.boo.com – It takes an hour to find a T-shirt on it www.miniheroes.co.uk – Unattractive , the homepage is too redundant
www.saturn.com. ——The design is too poor
www.e13.com. ——No new ideas
www.song .com. ——Navigation is unclear
59 Image size attribute, this attribute can be saved in the IMG tag. This can make web pages appear smooth because the browser can display the entire web page on the screen before the image is downloaded.
60 User Registration
If you can know who browses the website and how they browse the website, you can get a lot of useful information. However, requiring visitors to register before browsing your site runs the risk of driving away people who are unwilling to register. Another way to obtain information is to conduct prize contests or monetary rewards so that users can actively fill in some information feedback forms.
61 Make the website interactive
Provide some tools to answer questions on the website so that visitors can obtain interactive information from the website.
62 Image Updates
Change the images on your website as often as possible. People are more likely to click on images rather than text.
63 Offering Games on Your Site
Games are great interactive tools and a great way to keep visitors coming back to your site.
64 Select tool software
Choose Web design tools carefully. Make sure to use the software that you want most and feel best about yourself.
65 Use the latest version of software
Try to use the latest version of web design software, and it should also be authorized for free or cheap upgrades.