Modern Website Design - The Do's and Don'ts

All businesses require a well-designed and functional website as you can say business growth depends on it. You must keep yourself abreast of all the new things happening in the web development. Designing a website is a creative and an exciting task but along with it comes great responsibility.

There are always new features and techniques that may arise in the world of web development.

Modern Website Design - The Do's and Don'ts

Responsive Web design:

The current trend of website is responsive web design. This is where the website adjust itself to the user’s device whether it is a desktop, tablet or mobile phone meaning the content adjust itself depending on the screen size.

There are pros and cons of this method:

  1. Having a separate mobile device would increase the cost as extra time will be required to test and launch it.
  2. The benefit of this feature is to reach the mass audience you will have to create a responsive website. And as we know the mobile usage has surpassed desktop usage.

We have put together a list of the do's and don’ts for running of a great web design. Follow these practices to ensure your site is updated.

Don’ts of the Modern Website Design:

1. Don’t Ignore the older browser:

As technology upgrades, we tend to forget the old and move to the new and best version. It is easy to build a website in a new browser. New techniques such as CSS transitions will not work in older browsers. But you must keep yourself abreast with both new and old browsers. The ideal solution is to make sure your website works in old and new browsers.

2. Never build a website using tables:

Previously websites were built in tables. These days we now have HTML5 and CSS3 which allows for more flexibility when building websites. Instead of tables we have headers, footers, divs, sections and much more to define content on a page.

3 Don’t ignore the users:

Always keep your target audience in mind. Check the website yourself assuming you are a first time visitor. The point of view may differ from your customer. Explore different pages, this might give you a user-friendly experience.

4. Don’t create a cluttered layout:

Nobody would look at a Cluttered website. It doesn’t look attractive and is quite confusing to see. Instead go for well-organised website that would give your user a good experience and guides them well.

5. Don't use all the colors:

Using too many colors on the site make your website design clash. The rule of thumb says, your design should not use more than three colors. Balancing of colors on the site is utmost important.

6. Don't fill the page with long paragraphs:

Just like the layout, you don’t want to clutter the site with text. Create a proper flow of the content and make it look attractive and easy to read.

7. Don't use too many images:

Use the image only where necessary. Search engines can’t read the images so don’t rely on them to convey the text. When using a background image, always keep it under 1 MB. Remember, large images slows down your website’s loading time.

8. Don’t make users wait for the content to load:

A website that loads faster creates a good impression on the user. The website should load in 2 seconds or less but if it is taking more than that, visitors might become frustrated and leave the site. That’s the reason, speed should be a priority when building a web application.

9. Don’t show automatic pop-ups too early:

A lot of website show pop up messages like to subscribe the newsletter as soon as you arrive on the site. Showing pop-up windows is probably one of the most annoying things you can do to someone visiting your website. Users often close the pop ups without reading them. Time your pop-ups- may be when the user visit the end of the page.

10. Don’t use generic photos of people:

Engage your users by putting Images with human faces. When we see the faces of other humans it makes us feel like we are actually connecting with them, and not just using a product. Decorative photos rarely add value to the design and may harm the user experience.

Do’s of the Modern Website Design:

1. Use CSS Font smoothing technique:

A CSS technique that always makes a website look 100% better with minimal effort is font smoothing. Without these techniques, website may look fuzzy and unreadable in some places. So use the font smoothing technique to improve the readability of the website.

2. Make sure you fully test a website before it goes live:

To make sure perfection in your website, it is advisable to test it before launching it. You may test it on a tablet, phone on many possible browsers. Also test the speed of the site, for an ecommerce always check for the checkout process. And lastly check for any errors.

3. Do optimize for search:

Make sure you are following the SEO guidelines to keep in the eye of the google. Your page titles, meta descriptions, and content are all important players in driving better search signals.

4. Do create a focal point:

Where you want your users to go depends on the purpose of your website. For instance, an ecommerce website would drive visitors to a checkout point, while a SaaS site might drive visitors towards a demo or a free trial. So whatever be the purpose of your website, make sure you create a focal point of your homepage.

5. Make use of color combos that enhance your content:

While designing a website, make sure you highlight the brand, complement the content, and visually delight viewers. Associate the colors with the brands that makes sense. You may use automatic color generator palette for more color options.

6. Do make it easily scannable:

To keep the user’s attention on the website, create a short and easy to read content. Make Use of headings, bullets quotes and blocks to emphasize the essentials.

7. Do make it visually attractive:

Images make the website look attractive. So use images of high resolution and not pixelated. The images must reflect the brand’s personality. You can use textures and gradients to add visual appeal.

8.Keep your interface consistent:

One of the top principles of good UX is to keep the interface consistent throughout the entire product. The overall look and feel of your website should be consistent across all of your site’s pages. Consistency of navigation, typefaces, style and color schemes of writing can have a positive impact on usability and UX.

9. Change the color of the visited links:

Links play a vital role in the navigation process. When visited links don’t change color, users could unintentionally revisiting the same pages repeatedly. Knowing your past and present locations makes it easier to decide where to move next.

When people visit the websites, they expect excellent user experience. If you fail to meet their needs, they’ll simply move to your another website, which might be just a click away. That’s why with every design decision, you should think about what's best for the visitor and try to make the experience as pleasant as possible.

At Gluu, we offer static website design services that are interactive, engaging and creative. The websites we develop are launched quickly and we build them to load faster. Our professional developers form a brilliant team of experts in their respective fields. They make sure to understand your requirements and take real pride in giving you a high-quality website.

Our website design and hosting service includes:

Domain: Choosing a domain that reflects your business name and brand.

Hosting: Fast and reliable hosting for a year.

Responsive website: A four-page responsive website designed to display perfectly on any computer, tablet or mobile.

Maintenance/Security: Peace of mind, never worry about whether your plugins are up to date, if your website has been backed-up, or if your site is vulnerable to hacking.

For more information, feel free to contact us on 020 3500 2602