Randy Eagar

1. Lines and linework

These terms refer to borders, frames and rules and do not refer to pen-and-ink or pencil sketches. Yes, I am talking about actual lines here. Horizontal or vertical, thick or thin, regular or irregular, they help define and delimit spaces around various elements on your pages. Good linework increases both the readability and “directionality” (see #5, below) of the design as a whole.

2. Shape

Most people don’t think about this, but any enclosed area, form or contour in your design is a shape. Shapes in most layouts are square or rectangular, but nothing says they must be, and circles are useful, too. You can also use images to create other, regular or irregular shapes. In addition to shapes, I’ll include here “white space”, or the lack of shapes. White space can be just as effective as lovely graphics and shapes.

3. Texture

One thing that custom sites have over the typical template design website is the addition of texture. Texture imparts a “surface” feeling, and is tactile in printed matter, so choosing the paper stock-matte, weave, coated-is a design decision, too. Textures on layouts meant for broadcast or the Internet are visual only, but still key. Most textures do not add to the drag of drawing the website, as most textures are implemented in “chunks”, or in pieces that are pieced together.

4. Color/Branding

Color and branding go hand in hand. You need to know what your colors and thus your brand is ahead of time, before starting on your website. Color is probably the element that most designers are at least acutely aware of, if not schooled in. However, color is not required in many designs, and some art educators suggest creating designs without any color first. The artist, in this view, should then add only as much color as needed to enhance or complete the design. Another school of thought holds that color should be one of the first elements determined. Experience and experimentation will help every artist develop a good color sense and strategy.

5. Direction

Effectively designed layouts, in magazines or on your computer screen, usually have a sense of motion. A good design will lead the reader’s eyes through the design deliberately, using color changes, shapes, linework and copy placement direct viewers’ attention to what the designer wants them to see.

Here’s a good test for you for your website as well as others. Pull up  your website and close your eyes while it is loading. Now open your eyes and pay attention to a couple things:

• Where did you eyes go first
• Where did they go second, third, fourth, etc.
• What places did they not look at

You’ll need to be very practiced in this as your eyes will tend to race over the website. You should only concentrate on no more than 4 or 5 main focus points. More than this will dilute your effectiveness.

Finally, pay attention to what your competition is doing and improve upon their design. It’s amazing how many good ideas you can get from your competition and not even look similar if you are changing up your design elements.

Randy Eagar, CRS
President, WebsTarget SEO
www.WebsTarget.com
Randy@WebsTarget.com