September is here and as we were saying with the calendar, it’s time to think about what the New Year holds for us, starting projects and building ideas. Silo Creativo has already thought that we have another 365 (well, 366, one day more in February 🙂 ) to do everything that we suggest.
So, we started strongly “back to school” and what better way to start than talking about web design. Return to work for some usually coincides with the start of new projects. Surely many of you are thinking of starting a web project, maybe a personal blog or something more professional. It’s time to start with the blog you’ve always wanted to have.
Well, Silo Creativo wants to help you with 5 tips you should consider when you start your web project. No matters the platform you are going to use (you know that we work with WordPress, but there are a multitude of platforms,) there are some mistakes that you cannot make when starting your web project. Do you want to see them?
The beginning of my web project
Normally when we start with a web project, we think that there are some design details that are somewhat insignificant. It is true. A website with poor content and a good design will not go far, but there are some things in design that especially in the beginning can help you.
When you start your web project, you have to make your place among countless websites. What will make your website different from the previous ones and therefore make visitors stay in it?
Normally “there are the small details that make the difference.” So today we’ll talk about all those little mistakes that we all made, to give you advice. So if you’re starting your website and read this post… Pay attention!
1. A template gives you endless design possibilities … use them!!
Clearly you have to know when to use a template. We all know the benefits of a custom design, but also need to know that a template used in the right way will make you get a little faster and achieve your goals with excellent results.
Think what template is going to be useful for you. It is important to set the tone of your website or blog, find the style you want and find a template that resembles it and that can be customized on the points we need.
If we want that our logo occupies the central part of the head and for us that is the most important thing, we cannot go to a template that has no space for the logo, as it is going to be more complicated to customize if you have not that space.
There are plenty of templates depending on the platform you use. You can see our templates for WordPress or ThemeForest. You have to know that just as you are using them, they can be used for thousands of people, so the more you can customize it, the better!
2. Stylistic incongruities
Just as it is important to choose the appropriate template, and above all to personalize our brand, all elements of our website have to be representative of us and our brand.
If our corporate colours are green and blue, for example, those are the colours that will predominate in our web. Keep a stylistic unity in all elements. Our brand must be recognizable, as if you have business cards, these must have corporate colours and fonts too. So your website also (and above) has to be a reflection of that brand.
If our corporate colours are displayed in the header, those colours should be the same throughout the website, links titles … not as in the previous example in which colours are used interchangeably.
The whole web has to be you. Once you have defined your style, print it on all elements that relate to your brand.
3. Full text legibility of the web
We should not forget that if we have a web or blog, normally we want to convey a message. If it is our professional web we will be presenting us, and if it is a personal blog we will be talking about a topic. The images are clearly very important, but so are our words.
If you are writing a blog, but there is no readability, better close the web. As important as stylistic is that our web can be read without any problems.
3.1. Font combination that has no contrast
For those who read us regularly I know that this will not be a problem! 😉 As you know, the first rule in font combination is that contrast exists between them. However, if you’re still a little confused, you can see it in our infographics.
Font hierarchy and contrast on your website will be responsible for the user’s eye to focus on what you want. If your site is flat or there is no conflict, we will not know where to start or what to read.
The choice of font is very important and we cannot leave it to chance. You can see different font combinations that can surely help.
– 4 Combinations of Google Font to use on your Web
– Google Font Serif Combinations ready to copy and use
– 5 combinations Google Font Serif: My favourite the 4th
– 5 combinations Google Font Sans Serif. My favourite: the 3rd
3.2. Do not be afraid of spaces
There are also very close to fonts. If we contrast, but the words are too close together we will create a very bad readability in the text. You have to keep the elements of the web with the corresponding spacing.
This does not mean that we have to leave plenty of space between letters, but the spacing makes our web perfectly understands so it does not become a mass of letters and images.
3.3. Good correction in the texts
Make no mistake, you do not have to be Pio Baroja or Cervantes, but you have to respect spelling rules. It is difficult to write well, but you know you write for other people to read it and find it attractive, so you must make sure that you understand what you are writing and therefore your message will reach your target.
When you start your blog, you have the opportunity to decide the tone in which you write. It is a great moment; you have to know what kind of public you are going to have and what type of texts you are going to do.
3.4. Bad choice of background colour
Keep in mind that the background colour, as its name suggests, covers most of your website, so you cannot choose haphazardly.
Here we have what we call in my country “jack, queen and king,” ie, it is not the time to explore. The black is not a good colour so you better go for white, gray or very light colours. We are looking for the readability of the website so that we know that black on white is the best option. Do not be complicated and use this combination.
Do not think that’s why your website is going to be boring, quite the contrary, you can play with some textures and patterns or use flat backgrounds.
4. Let’s talk about the calls to action
Calls to action are one of the main elements in the design of a website. But that’s a call to action; we cannot fill our website with many calls as all we can get is that the user is lost between the buttons.
Your website is not a bomb. You must make clear what the calls to action are and define them.
Choose a colour and use it to the call to action. Create a button or banner design that is attractive for visitors with the same style of your website.
5. Your web design should be fashionable
If you have already decided your website, your font, spacing … everything is perfect. You have followed the stylistic canons of the time, you’ve been seeing on the flat design and the material design and you got your website fashion. Congratulations!
However, you should know that web design does not die. Fashions are changing and so your website should always be engaging to these trends.
In the same way that it is now impossible to think that your website is not responsive, a few years ago only a few were. You have to be careful and go to adjust to the different trends. Do not make your website look old when it is not.
Anyway, you know that Silo Creativo will inform all the news.
Good luck!
It is important to take a look at competitor’s website what are they using to get some idea and how we can make differentiate our-self from them.
Hello Sammy,
Thank you very much for your comment. Yes, It is an other tip that we have to do, although we mustn’t to be obsessed with this 😉 We have to mark the difference!
Regards,