The Do’s and Don’ts of Web Design For Those Who Aren’t Coders
By: Kimberly Grant
WordPress can’t do all of the work. Sure, you’re not a website developer. You’re still learning what to do with the plugin options. Do they really need to be updated that much? Yes.
Now is the time to graduate from the elementary aspect of web design and enter the world of website building with intention; via WordPress, because you’re still not a website developer. Before you go full speed ahead with your intentions, let’s address some things you don’t want to do with your web design.
Bad Web Designer!
All websites are designed around the user experience and should be mobile-first. After all, the user is the person that you want to be so moved by your web pitch, that they answer your call to action (CTA). What could make your user send you to voicemail is making an error in color choices. When you are using a font color, like white, it is not a good idea to use a background image where white is one of the primary colors. Instead, contrast the colors for maximum readability, like Fiverr.com.
Another bad user experience, is when the navigation of the website is hard to locate or even … navigate. Nothing says frustration like trying to move past a landing page that just won’t move. Instead, make all of your navigations so user-friendly, that your grandmother can use it without calling you from her flip phone. A good example of simple navigation is Selfridges & Co’s website. All of the navigation that your user can need is right at their fingertips.
Grandma Can’t Get Rid of That Window
Another aspect of web building that could leave a bad taste in your user’s mouth is being stuck with a lightbox (on-window pop-up that grays out the webpage) that they can’t get rid of. It’s like being stuck with a relative who refuses to leave your house. Instead, make sure your lightbox clearly shows your user where they can close the box, like DSW’s “X”.
Nothing says lack of segmenting, like a pop-up to join a newsletter you’ve already joined. In fact, the purpose of marketing pixels and cookie tracking on a website is to help companies differentiate their website visitors between past and potential customers. Even if your browser is set to not track cookies, getting a large pop-up to join a newsletter is invasive. Instead, companies should follow Macy’s example. There’s a small banner on the top that politely asks for you to join their mailing list without being in your face.
A Taste of the User Experience
Now, the above is but a taste of things website designers shouldn’t do with their website building. There are other mistakes that can be made. A great way to catch as many mistakes as possible is to test your website on a consistent basis. Make sure that you test for the user experience and your website will graduate from elementary to intermediate level capabilities. Once you’ve done that, you can use your grandmother as the ultimate test subject.
Wondering what other advice Kimberly Grant has to offer? You can see her previous post here.
