Websites are created for many different purposes, such as, selling products, offering services, or sharing information. The one thing all websites have in common is the need to attract visitors and keep them coming back on a regular basis. In order to accomplish this you need to have a web design that is pleasing to look at, easy to navigate, and offers good content.
The first thing any visitor to your website sees is the home page. This should be your design starting point. You can expand on it to create other pages, but you always want to keep the design onsistent from page to page. In other words if your home page is black and gold, you don't want to do your other pages in red and green. Any graphics you use specifically for your site should blend with the color choices you make. Pleasant colors and graphics will help make your site memorable.
Easy Navigation is a must. Going from page to page needs to be as easy as possible. Each page should have a link back to the home page. Visitors want to know where they are and how to get back to where they were without having to use the back button. Nine times out of ten they will close the page rather than continuously using the back button to try and find their way back.
Content is the backbone of any website. Spelling and grammatical errors do not look professional. Have someone proofread all content before you add it. Offer content that is specific to the theme of your site. If I do a search for jungle animals and find your site, then I don't want to find content that mostly pertains to the Solar System.
Web design is ninety-five percent common sense. You know what you like to see on other websites. Be sure and use that same criteria when creating a website.
About the Author
Stacy Hensley
Jaks Creations-Web Design and Graphics
http://www.jakscreations.net