Designing a Web Site

Key Points to Take Into Consideration

It's important to keep your focus on the reason why you're building a web site.
It's easy to lose your goal in the process of making your web site. This will usually
result in a confusing, difficult to use web site.

• Why are you making a site?
  • Personal reasons?
    • Display your resume
    • Hobby
    • Pictures
    • To learn how to make a site
  • Commercial purposes?
    • Selling/Buying
    • Announcements/Public Relations
    • Employment
    • Offer technical support
    • Get customer feedback and data

• Who is the audience?
  • Specific group or gender
  • Their interests
  • Their income
  • Languages
  • Education
  • Computer skills

Navigation and Usability

1. Make sure your navigation is easy to learn and use.
2. Minimize download time.
3. Make content easy to understand.
4. Put a summary and table of contents on your home page.
5. Put a link to the home page in the upper left corner of all pages.
6. Have links to important parts of the site on every page.
7. Consider including a search engine on every page or at least one at the site.
8. Put an email link at the bottom of every page.
9. Put important information first and emphasize it.
10. Make sure important information is easy to find.
11. Keep page length short. If pages are long, include a table of contents with links to the sections beneath. Have links from all parts of the page back to the top.
12. Use headings and lots of paragraphs to make reading easier.
13. Minimize clutter and sensationalism.
14. Test it with typical users.

© 2004 Dan Vaughan