Website Cirtique The DO's and Don'ts

Ever go on a website and just get thrown off by how busy the page is ? Have you ever just left a web page because of it's annoying flashy advertisements or flashy/loud colour scheme? All this bugged me, but I never knew why? When I learned the 10 Principles of Effective Web Design, I began to understand. There are some key elements that make a website appealing and unappealing for the user. Through this critique I will explain a few key factors that make a website successful and unsuccessful.

A good example of a website design that isn't very visually pleasing is msn.com, Although there is a good use of negative space and white space, there are way too many buttons and lists. (it's a little to much to take in all at once) The advertising is in the smack dab middle of the page, this attracts the attention away from the side news feed. If it's your first time on the site it can be a little confusing. At the top left hand corner there is a MSN logo, and beside it is a search box. On the right side there are three large icons for: hotmail, messenger and my msn and above that a bunch of options for your search. Everyone knows the msn logo because it's very popular, but if I didn't know what msn was, I don't think I would stick around much longer. Below that there are like a zillion options: autos, entertainment etc, for the latest news. Directly underneath that on the left is a list of the top stories and in the center there is a a large advertisement with these large letters popping out! It's extremely overwhelming and frustrating to navigate around the site. It's hard for the brain to understand and process, which area of the site you want to visit. It's difficult to remain patient because of the complicated layout of the site, the worst part is that all the information advertisements and the search engine are all crammed together. Once you vistit the site several times it tends to get a little less confusing.

Now here is an example of a site that is slightly more effective and visually pleasing

Ken Gangbar Studios

This website is great example of an effective use of the principals of web design. As soon as you arrive it's self-explanatory. The most brilliant thing about this site is that is has been designed in a Z pattern with the most important content in the top right and left corners and in the bottom left corner.(this makes it easy for the visitor to quickly scan for what they are looking for) Upon entering the site, On the left hand corner the logo appears in a clear white font, on the right hand side there are three simple categories: about, client list and content, In the center is a large image of a piece of art work by the artist, on the bottom left, to side of the image is a brief description of the art work, on the very bottom on the site there are three categories once again (if you move your mouse to the bottom of the screen a gallery appears). The site has used the space very well. I like the format it's easy to scan through the site. It's completely user friendly, the information is easy to access, the font is clear and easy to read and I like the way the background is black and the font is white, the two colours contrast well together and it looks smart and professional.

I hope that this will help you, when you are designing a website for your self, or even when you are designing a blog, or an advertisement or even something else, you can take into consideration the Do's and Don'ts of web design.