The home page
So what do you want on this most important first screen? You
naturally want the title of your website and you want to
let visitors know what the content is as briefly as possible.
Use short phrases and short paragraphs. You also want to
provide links to the main sections of your site (making sure
to include text links).
Set the theme
In addition, you are setting the tone/theme of your site
with this first page. . . what visitors will expect
to see carried out on every page within the site. This
is also true of the navigation system you use.
Organize the pages
You want to use contrast to guide the eye around your
pages. And, to be effective, the contrast must be bold.
Also, any good web page design must have a focal point.
Something on the page must be the dominant eye catcher.
If everything has the same level of importance, then nothing
is important. Group items and information that belongs
together using white space so that the eye knows they are
together.
Alignment
The alignment of elements on the page - both vertically
and horizontally - is also very important. Choose one
alignment and stick with it. That doesn't mean you have
to align everything similarly, it means things should be
aligned the same on the page.
Webpage content
A webpage should not overwhelm the visitor with unnecessary
animations, flash novelties or music. All these things
can detract from the content of your page. If you want
to present these things, do it on another page where you
can isolate the full affect from other elements of the
website or use them sparingly. Use white space to lead
the eye around the page.
Rules of thumb
In order for visitors to understand your site you need to
follow a few more rules of thumb:
- Explain everything clearly and briefly
- Make sure you present information in a logical order
- Use plain language
Main sections
It is best to keep your main website sections to no more
than five - seven divisions. As the visitor moves farther
into your website you can begin to add more pages and detail.
A website can be compared to a triangle. The index page
forms the tip of the pyramid followed by the main sections,
subsections and pages of increased content. Let your visitors
decide where they want to go, starting with brief introductions
and leading into more detail as they proceed through the
site.
Now let's recap the main points:
Balance the web page for a more pleasing experience for
the visitor
Have a clearly defined focal point on your page
Make good use of the hot spots on the page for your title
and links.
(see - http://blog.eyetools.net/eyetools_research/2005/03/eyetracking_goo.html)
Keep your text brief and to the point
Use only one style of alignment and be consistent throughout
the website.
Summary
Treat each page of your website as though it were the
only page on your site. Put as much care into the
designing of each individual page as you would your homepage.
To help you get started check out magazines they are
a good source of layout ideas. They have the same problem
that a website does, they must keep your attention throughout
the publication. Build good webpages and you will be
building a great website.
Gene DeFazzio is the webmaster and author of the Rocketface(R)
Workshop. http://www.rocketface.com/ 
