The cure for web ugliness

It’s easy to identify an ugly website. Ugliness in web design is immediately obvious, as it generates a visceral reaction. In worst-case scenarios, a bad website can literally give a headache to the viewer. Website patrons are not only perceptive of ugliness; they’re quick to judge it, too. The average viewer will render their verdict on a website in less than ten seconds, and if it’s not favorable, they may leave just as quickly.

Here are a few indicators of bad web design, and some ways to improve web ugliness.

Typography

The balancing act of typography can be especially difficult for people without previous experience in design. Typography is a delicate art. Small changes to typography can seriously impact a design’s overall appeal, so it’s important to do it correctly.

White space should be considered first. A website‘s readability suffers from short line height, excessive column width, or paragraphs too long or too short. All of these factors adversely impact the psychological effect of a website on its patrons. Font size is another sensitive factor. If a font is too small, readability suffers. If it’s too big, it can be distracting.

Another important general rule is to never mix more than three fonts on the same page. A greater variety gives the website a cluttered and disorganized look.

Colour

Colour is a topic that new designers are usually quicker to grasp, but caution is key here, too. There are rules to colour theory, but new designers often misinterpret them. For example, some have heard that contrast is important when picking a color scheme, so they inappropriately decide to apply opposite colours where it shouldn’t normally occur.

Architecture and navigability

Of course, website patrons aren’t visiting simply because they appreciate good typography or colours, but rather because they need some sort of information. If the information is nested deep in the site’s architecture, they may give up before they reach it. In general, visitors should be able to find what they’re looking for within two clicks.

Images: the do’s and don’ts

Images can be powerful tools for communication, but too many pictures confuse visitors. Moving images are rarely appropriate. If a designer is unsure, he or she should probably refrain from using them altogether. An acceptable use of moving images might be a video demonstration, or a scrolling image gallery. Using flash or animated GIFs for decoration or humour is always regrettable.

Browser testing

All browsers render HTML differently, so every website should be tested on a multitude of browsers. Internet Explorer, Safari, and Mozilla Firefox have the largest market share as I write this article, so websites should look perfect on them, ideally. Visitors on other browsers shouldn’t be alienated, though;web designers should aim for wide-spread accessibility.

Load time optimization

Load time optimization is as important as any design aspect when building websites. There are many ways to speed  load time up. First and foremost, simplify everything. Any element in a site that can be done away with, should be. One common and completely avoidable pitfall is improperly formatted images. Whenever possible, images should be in a compressed format such as JPEG and shrunk to the exact size they will appear in a browser.

These are a few common errors that new web designers can make on their sites. Most of these problems are easily overcome with some experience, but for many clients, the easiest solution may be to seek the services of a professional.