The Basics of Web Design: Part 5

Salutations and Good Day to you my friends! I know it's been a few weeks since our last Web Design discussion, but hopefully you've taken the time to really reflect and focus on creating your custom site to their full, creative potential. In the last episode I talked about content and developing it for your site. Content is ESSENTIAL to your website, but so is organization and that's what I'd like to talk to you about in today's episode. Organization goes hand in hand when creating a website. Think of it like you would organize a three-ring binder. You want it to look good and make the information easy to find. If you cram papers into the binder it gets messy very quickly. Websites are the same thing- keep the content organized and looking fresh, so you won't have any issues!

Think back to earlier in our series; in part 3 (click here to see the post) I talked to you about templates and using them as a foundation for setting up your pages. Templates are helpful because they give you a guide on where you can place certain pieces of your page. After you've uploaded the content you wish to use for your site you might be looking at the page and thinking it still looks to cluttered or items are in a good spot. For example you may find that your site looks something like this:

No offense to whoever created this site (I got this off of Google Images as an example image), but there's a lot of crazy stuff going on visually and you really don't know where to look first. There's color, different text styles, images, and it's all really being blown at your face at once. While all of these elements are great for a website, you have to sort and filter which items grab the attention in the best way. When I created my online portfolio for the first time, I searched around the internet and looked at other people's profiles as examples to follow. Regardless of what your website is being used for I suggest you take a peek at similar sites and follow their structure. Pay attention to where logos, social media apps, search bars, and other important parts are placed. Be sure to stay consistent too. If your visitors are navigating through multiple pages make sure to keep your fonts, logos (if applicaible), and title fonts remain consistent to avoid confusion. If you ever navigated through the different pages of The Creative Cabana blog you'll notice that the fonts are the same, banner image, and titles all remain the same. This makes it easy for people visiting my blog to find the information they want quickly and easily.

While you are editing the design of your pages don't worry if you have to adjust your template- they're only used as a guide and do not limit the boundaries of your design applications. Trying move images to the center instead of off to the right, change the font of your name or business, consider moving the links to other pages into a top bar instead of a side box. There are multiple ways you can develop these pages so that your pages can flow and engage with your audience better. Over time you'll pick up on what things you can change and adjust on your site. For now concentrate on giving your site a good visual display by keeping your pages organized and fresh. Here's an example of a good design to give you a little inspiration:

Stay tuned for the final part in our Web Design series which will focus on publishing and promoting your site! Now that you have it finalized, proofed, and developed it's time to hit that magical "publish" button and spread the word about your talent. It's going to be very exciting and I can't wait to wrap up this great series with you and go out with a bang! Keep checking back for updates. Until next time, have a great day and I'll see you back here at The Creative Cabana again soon!

*Images used in this post were collected from Google Images Search results. I do not own any of the businesses seen in these images. These images were used only as layout examples and have no reflection on the business themselves or the quality of their product. The Bitstrip image used in this post was created by the Bitstrip application on Facebook. I do not own Bitstrips or any of their developers. No Copyright Infringement Intended.