5 Basic Rules of Web Design the most important rule in web design is that your web site should be easy to read. What does this mean? You should choose your text and background colours very carefully.

When I first designed my website, I did not know the 5 basic rules. I followed the instructions that came with the web design software I downloaded from the internet for free. I ended up using the web design template that came with the program and the hosting service instruction helped me upload it to the web domain. I believe that traffic would just happen. Boy was I wrong. Let's take a look at the 5 basic rules for a good web design.

5 Basic Rules of Web Design the most important rule in web design is that your web site should be easy to read. What does this mean? You should choose your text and background colours very carefully. You don't want to use backgrounds that obscure your text or use colours that are hard to read. Dark-coloured text on a light-coloured background is easier to read than light-coloured text on a dark background. You also don't want to set your text size too small (hard to read) or too large (it will appear to shout at your visitors). All capitalised letters give the appearance of shouting at your visitors.

Keep the alignment of your main text to the left, not cantered. Centre-aligned text is best used in headlines. You want your visitors to be comfortable with what they are reading, and most text is left aligned.

Your web site should be easy to navigate All of your hyperlinks should be clear to your visitors. Graphic images, such as buttons or tabs, should be clearly labelled and easy to read. Your web graphic designer should select the colours, backgrounds, textures, and special effects on your web graphics very carefully. It is more important that your navigational buttons and tabs be easy to read and understand than to have "flashy" effects. Link colours in your text should be familiar to your visitor (blue text usually indicates an unvisited link and purple or maroon text usually indicates a visited link), if possible. If you elect not to use the default colours, your text links should be emphasized in some other way (boldfaced, a larger font size, set between small vertical lines, or a combination of these). Text links should be unique - they should not look the same as any other text in your web pages. You do not want people clicking on your headings because they think the headings are links.

Your visitors should be able to find what they are looking for in your site within three clicks. If not, they are very likely to click off your site as quickly as they clicked on. Your web site should be easy to find. How are your visitors finding you online? The myth, "If I build a web site, they will come," is still a commonly held belief among companies and organisations new to the Internet.

People will not come to your web site unless you promote your site both online and offline. Web sites are promoted online via search engines, directories, award sites, banner advertising, electronic magazines (e-zines) and links from other web sites. If you are not familiar with any of these online terms, then it is best that you have your site promoted by an online marketing professional. Web sites are promoted offline via the conventional advertising methods: print ads, radio, television, brochures, word-of-mouth, etc. Once you have created a web site, all of your company's printed materials including business cards, letterhead, envelopes, invoices, etc. should have your URL printed on them.

Not only should your web site be easy to find, but your contact information should be easy to find. People like to know that there is a person at the other end of a web site who can help them in the event that:

1. They need answers to questions which are not readily available on your web site. 2. Some element on your site is not working and end users need to be able to tell you about it, and 3. Directory editors need you to modify parts of your site to be sure that your site is placed in the most relevant category. By giving all relevant contact information (physical address, telephone numbers, fax numbers, and email address), you are also creating a sense of security for your end users. They can contact you in the way that makes them feel the most comfortable.

The purpose of this article is to show you some of the basic rules to good web design. You can can find more basic rules and tips at my blog. It is full of information, ebooks, tips and how to ecourse that take you step by step through the process. Read my bio below and you will be directed to my blog for all you need to design a website and hosting with good services on the web.