Creating a site that makes an impression on users is part of web site design. The goal is for the user to bookmark your site, send your link to a friend or perform an action on your site such as sign up for a newsletter or purchase a product.
The following tips will help you create a web site that compels users to access it again and again.
Get critical information into the user’s hands quickly
The user probably accessed your site through a search engine. Their goal may be to find out information about something and will do a quick scan of the page to determine if what they want is there.
Tell them it is in the first few sentences on the page. Don’t make the user guess because they will just move on. Plan on a user spending just 10-20 seconds on your site before they decide to stay or move on.
Give the user a “sound bite”
Bulleted text and lists are the visual equivalent of a “sound bite”. Helpful, concise information delivered in this fashion allows the user to see that your web site is where they want to be.
Make it easy for the user to get around your site
Make navigating around your site easy for the user. Every second the user is thinking about how to get back and forth through your site is time wasted. And every user has their own idea of how much time they are willing to “waste” on a web site before they leave.
User white space and graphics correctly
The desire in creating a web site is to put out content that will draw people to it. So, more content, more people…right? Not if it’s hard to read.
If your wonderful content is hard to read on the screen because of it’s density, people will drift off of your site. Don’t be afraid of including white space and graphics throughout the page to give the user’s eyes a break.
Only include graphics that have some relevance to the topic.
Limit the user of graphics so as not to be a distraction. You don’t want the user’s mind wandering for they might just wander off of your site.
Give the user links to interesting related topics
Don’t be afraid to place links to other information on your web site. The goal is to keep the user on your web site.
When linking to items in your web site, make sure to open the page in the same window. If you link to another web site, open a new window with the content so that your web site stays in a window on the user’s desktop.
Restrict the affiliate ad temptation
The goal of passive income is to put something out that drives revenue to you every time a user clicks the link. That’s great if you don’t lose the user while waiting for a page to load because one of your affiliate ads is slow to load.
Make sure the ads create value in the user’s experience of your site.
Entice the user to come back to your site
Once the user has completed their original purpose for visiting your site, give them a reason to come back. Create multi-part installments of the information. Offer to send a newsletter with useful “how to” information.
A well-designed web site creates a following of people that come back because of the great experience they have each time they access it.
When you have a great website to share with others, you can easily share it on Google+ if you already have registered for an account with a free invite.
