Web Site Navigation and Design
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Russell Arsenault February 27, 2007
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It seems
that one of the hardest things to get right in web design is creating proper
layout and navigation. Sometimes a web site will be very rich in content,
except that traffic will suffer due to poor navigational structure. In other
words, navigation has become one of the key ingredients in developing
sustainable, long-term traffic to your site.
Your site tree:
Often
before you even get into the graphical aspects of your site, it is useful to
think about the content that you will have for your site and brainstorm
possible navigational schemes, otherwise known as site trees. These trees
describe the way in which your site branches out into articles, products and
services, and any other additional sections you may have. You would be
surprised how different tree layouts can be created, but not all are created
equal.
As an
example, let’s say that you have a site that has the following pages:
- Home page
- About us
- Products
- Services
- Contact
- Clients
- News
Generally
speaking, the root of your website will be your home page or index page which
serves as the main landing destination of your visitors. From here, they should
be able to easily reach many parts of your site, often within 2 clicks or less,
and be able to return to your home page with ease. Depending on the size and
nature of your site, you may need to create ‘deep’ links, (3 or more clicks
away from your homepage), but they should only be used for very specific
information. As an example, there is no reason why the 7 pages listed above
shouldn’t be accessible from your home page, as they are very broad categories.
Content Layout
What is
essential in laying out your content is that from every portion of your site
your visitors should know where they are (through the use of titles and
graphics), where they can go (using navigational and contextual links), and how
they can get back (either to previous pages or back to the home page).
Once you
have developed your site tree it’s time to think about where to place your
links. There two most popular are header links and sidebar links. Many sites
use a combination of these two. Others use only header links.
Drop down
menus can also provide readers an easy way to get to a number of different
pages in one click. This is particularly useful when you have a variety of
content, as it saves people from ‘drilling down’ through multiple pages to get
to a variety of content. This also helps you avoid the problem of deep links,
pages which are three or more clicks from your home page.
One of the
best ways to provide a way back to the home page is to place your company logo
in the top-left left corner of every page in your site, and have it link to your
home page. Not only is the logo a well-known way of getting back to the index
page of a website, but it also allows you to consistently brand your identity
throughout your site. It’s important to remind your readers that the pages and
content were created by you!
For top and
sidebar navigation links, try to stick to common names that people are used to.
You will have the opportunity to get into more detailed subjects within your
content, but it is often better to provide your readers with easily
recognizable buttons and names which they are able to intuitively understand.
Anchor
links can also be a useful way to contextually link to other pages in your
site. If you have a paragraph that alludes to another product or service, you
can simply anchor link some text in that paragraph like this. While this is a common way to
link to other sites of interest, it’s also a great way to link to other pages
within your site. These shouldn’t really replace your header or sidebar links,
but serve as a supplemental means of navigation.
Adding a
good site map will place the finishing touch on your site. Site maps are a
summary of the entire layout of your site, and often use text links to allow
your reader to get to any part of your site. Readers who are searching for
something specific in your site will sometimes refer to site maps.
Graphics
Eye-catching
graphics, when combined with a strong layout and structure will ensure that
your visitors stay a while. It is also one of the ways you can separate
yourself from the competition, as there are many websites out there with very
standard layouts and just a few short paragraphs.
Do not
underestimate unique photo stills when designing your website. When integrated
properly, they can be one of the most effective ways of personalizing web
design. Photos and graphics are sure to add visual eye-candy to your
information and content.
And of
course, a well-designed logo is a must! It should be one of the first things
your reader sees when entering your site. It can also be useful to have your
logo integrated into a banner-style graphic and add it to your header for a
more integrated feel.
When it
comes to graphics however, you should be careful that you don’t overdue things.
Bandwidth intensive video may turn away some of your potential visitors due to
slow loading times etc. Because of this, you are often better to go with simple
flash animations that will spice up your website without placing unnecessary
demands on your readers’ computers and connections.
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