JUzabiliti the main page

To attract attention of the visitor, the site has only 10 seconds. Whether the main page of your site will keep the user? In a society sated with the information and numerous sites of a different orientation, the main page of a site should draw attention of visitors and answer questions: where, that is farther, what for. Whether the main page of your site responds these requirements? In this release main principles of creation of convenient main pages (on materials of jobs of Jacob Nilsena) are listed

What for?

Process of promotion of a site, the visitor on which cannot find the information necessary to him, waste of time. The site will be unprofitable both in the financial plan, and by way of visitors.

Purpose  of a site

?         The name and-or a trade mark of the company should have the suitable size and to settle down in an appreciable place of page. Usually it is the top left corner (for languages read from left to right)

?         To add to page the advertising slogan which precisely would characterize, than the given company (or for what the site is intended) is engaged

?         Precisely allocate paramount problems{tasks} of a site, that, having got on the main page, the visitor at once understood, with what he should begin (for example, the middle of the top part of page. Try to not overload this area visual effects - if to allocate everything, the user will not notice anything.

?         The quantity{amount} of key problems{tasks} should be small (1-4), and area of page around of it{her} - blank)

?         Registration of the main page should distinguish her  from other pages of a site precisely.

The information on the company

If support a feedback mechanism, explain purpose  of the given link and specify details - who exactly will read the received messages: service of job with clients or the web-master, etc.

Style of contents of a site

Choosing words, be guided by language of users. Names of sections and categories should correspond{meet} to their name from the point of view of the user, instead of the company (for example, « the Information for the consumer » is better to replace wide concept on « How to save energy at home »)

Do not use too many clever phrases or an advertising slang which only complicate understanding (not « Choose, plan and forward! », and « Planning of holiday »)

Strictly watch{keep up} application of capital letters and observance of style formatting (if all elements of the list are typed capital and lower case letters, and one - only capital, there is an impression, that the given element is more important than others)

Formulating tasks for users of a site, use an imperative mood, for example « Enter the name of city ».

Avoid exclamation marks (then they should be used often or other text will lose the importance)

Use of examples for the brief review of contents of a site

Examples should tell, instead of simply describe contents of a site (the heading "Goods" will say much less, than photos of the several real goods together with their prices)

Each example should be accompanied by the link to the detailed description of the given product, instead of categories to which he belongs

Despite of the previous rule, near to the description of concrete examples nevertheless it is necessary to place and the link to a category as a whole.

Links to the detailed information on a concrete product should differ from links to a category as a whole.

Links

Do not use in names of links of the instruction of the general{common} character as, for example « Press here »

Colors of the seen{overlooked} and not seen{overlooked} links should differ

In the name of the link or group of links do not use a word "link". To show, that the given word or a phrase is the link, emphasize!it / its and allocate blue

If function of the link differs from ordinary transition to other Web-page and will consist, say, in loading a PDF-file, sending of the electronic message, start of audio or a videoplayer or any other application, about it should be said obviously.

Navigation

The main panel of navigation should be in an appreciable place of page, it is preferable near to its{her} basic part (it is not necessary to place the top horizontal panel of navigation (never mind, main or any another) above graphic elements like horizontal borders or banners - users frequently ignore any rectangular area in the top part of the screen, and also everything, that is above it{her}. Similar behaviour name « banner blindness ».

The page should not contain active (i.e. such on which it is possible to click) the link to.

Do not use in names of elements of navigation independently thought up artificial words. In names of categories their distinction should be incorporated - if users will not understand the invented terminology cannot and distinguish a category.

Search

The main page should contain directly a field for input of search searches, instead of simply the link to a search page.

Links to service of a site

Do not add on a site the services which are not having the attitudes{relations} to his  basic subjects (frequently services appear on a site only because they could be put there instead of because they are really necessary. For example, it is completely not necessary to add the link to weather forecast if this site has no any attitude{relation} neither to news, nor to actually weather).

Do not insert on a site of service which repeat standard functions of an observer, such as a choice of starting page or creation of a bookmark.

The schedule and animation

Let the user to solve himself, whether he wants to see animated prompt to a site - do not start her  by default (if she all the same is automatically started without dependence from desire of the user provide, at least, an easy and understandable way of its{her} disconnect).

Graphic registration

Try to do without a horizontal strip of scrolling for the sanction of the screen 800 on 600 pixels.

All main elements of the main page whenever possible should be « above a line of a bend » (in the first screen of page accessible without vertical scrolling) for the most widespread sanction of the screen which at present makes 1024 on 768 pixels.

Use "floppy" structure of the main page that its{her} size could adapt automatically to various sanctions of the screen.

Elements of the interface

Never apply elements of the interface if the user should not click on them (for example if on page there is a bulleted list with graphic markers - take care of that it was possible to click and on markers too).

The address of the main page

The main pages of the commercial companies should have the address of a kind www.company.com (or equivalent URL for the domain of your country or the noncommercial domain of the top level. Take care as of that the main page of the company "responded" on both addresses www.company.com and company.com)

If the maintenance{contents} of a site is closely adhered to the concrete country, the address should contain the domain of the top level of the given country.

If it is possible, register on itself the domain names containing alternative, reduced, and also most often used wrong variants of a spelling of a name of the company.

News and press releases

Make the special resume for each clause{article} or the press release which it is mentioned on the main page. (it is not necessary to reproduce simply as the resume the first paragraph of clause{article} which obviously did not intend for independent "existence")

Revealed windows and intermediate pages

The users who typed{collected} in an address bar an observer main URL of your site or have come on him  under the link, should get at once on the "present"{"true"} main page. (Any effective prompts and intermediate pages should not be. Exception - if on a site to contain materials which reading is not authorized to children or to some other categories of users - the prompt with the prevention{warning} of presence of a material of the certain subjects will be even pertinent).

Refuse revealed windows. (Additional windows only distract attention from the main page and even if these windows contain any valuable information, the majority of users all the same will accept them for advertisements and will try to close faster. One more lack of revealed windows consists that will easily get rid of them - as soon as the user closes such window, it disappears, and it  it is impossible back, even if to the user very much will want)

Advertisements

Advertising banners of other companies should be born{be taken out} « on periphery » pages. (Never place banners near to paramount elements of page - alongside with banners visitors will ignore also elements. At all it is not recommended to place the main information of page above advertisements: the majority of users "suffers" from « banner blindness », i.e. will ignore everything, that is above area of accommodation of banners)

Avoid the standard receptions of design of advertising banners in registration of the basic contents of a site.

The message on technical problems and non-staff situations

If a site "sleg" or if the important elements of a site have ceased to work, immediately inform about it on the main page. (Try to estimate approximately even, what is the time will leave on debugging - for example, say not simply « Try to go on a site a little bit later », and « Predictably, the site will earn about 4 o'clock in the evening ») Beforehand think over the plan of job with a site on a case of non-staff situations. (For example, prepare alternative main page with specially area, allocated{removed} under the message on the arisen state of emergency, and also with the simplified circuit of navigation which would consist of several cross references and a way of returning to the main page of a site)

Gratitude

Do not spend a precious place of page for expression blagodarnostej to the search engine, the design studio, the liked stamp of a Internet-observer or technology used on a site. (it at all does not excite Users, and each superfluous element of page only complicates her  and distracts attention from the basic maintenance{contents})