Do’s and Don'ts of Web Design

By Emily Snyder

ColoursDo… Don’t…

You should have a background that is a fairly dull colour, it will make it easier to see the text. The colour should be boring and plain, then the text will be easier to read and not hard on the eyes.

Don’t make the background a really bright colour, it can distract the reader from the actual text or make it harder to read for some people. Say if the background is a neon colour, that can hurt peoples eyes and make the text hard to read if you use certain colours.

Text

Do…Make the test colour easy to read. If possible get straight to the point. People like if they can find the information quickly and easily.

Don’t…Try not to have lots of unneeded text. People don’t like to search through long paragraphs to find the needed information. They will like quick and easy information.

Backgrounds Do… Don’t…

Make the background a plain and boring colour, it will make the text easier to read and will not hurt peoples eyes.

If you use plain colours like blue, white, or grey, the text will be easier to read.

Make the background really bright and glitzy, it distracts the reader from the actual information.

If you use really bright neon colours the text may be fairly hard or difficult to read.

Glitz

Do…You can have one or two things glitzy but only so it draws the attention of the reader to that spot. The title or something important should have glitz.

Don’t…Do not make everything glitzy, it may confuse the reader because they would not know where to look. If it all has glitz it will look unprofessional.

InformationDo… Don’t…

Make the information quick and easy to find. The reader will find the right information if it is on topic and gets straight to the point.

Don’t have lots of unneeded text that will make the information harder to find. Don’t make it off topic or the reader might not get the right information.

Pictures

Do…Add few useful pictures that will help the reader understand the concept of your website.

Don’t…Add useless pictures that have nothing to do with the website. You wouldn’t want a picture of a llama on a website for pizza… unless the theme is llamas…

StructureDo… Don’t…

Keep your website neat and properly structured. Make sure that your website is easy to follow and is not to complicated.

Don’t have a really messy website that makes no sense to anyone and is really difficult to follow.

Links

Do…There should be few links that are actually useful to the reader, make sure that the links go to the proper places.

Don’t…Don’t have lots of links that lead to random places that have nothing to do with your website. The reader will be led to the wrong places and will not be able to find the things that they need.

LooksDo… Don’t…

Make your website appealing to the reader. If it looks better the reader will enjoy it more and get needed material from your website.

Don’t make your website unappealing to the reader, they will enjoy a website that look better.

Organization

Do…Make your website neat and tidy. It will be easier for the reader to find what's needed. Keep it organized with simple information.

Don’t…Make your website messy and unorganised. The reader will not be able to find all of the needed information.

NeatnessDo… Don’t…

Keep it all organized with few useful pictures and easy information.

Make pictures overlap and don’t have too many. Don’t make the information hard to find and offtopic.

Contact information

Do…Leave your email and name. make sure they can contact you if they have questions and things like that.

Don’t…Make it anonymous, they need to be able to contact you if they need to.