There are two major factors in what makes a website “good” or “bad” – usability and aesthetic appeal. In order to reach people and keep them interested, you need to maximize both. If you create a site that is ugly or doesn’t match your current branding, it can look unprofessional. But if you design a beautiful site that is difficult to navigate, people will leave. Neither scenario is good for business. The following five principles of good web design will help you understand what it takes to keep users on your site long enough to convey your message and ideally, turn them into a customer.

1: Usability

Users don’t want to ponder where to find the information they need -- they want visual clues and easily recognizable links that direct them to their aim. To make your site user-friendly, think about typical user tasks. Make a list of different things users want to find/do on your site and make it easy. That could mean having the most common tasks on your home page or making sure the search box is accessible from each page. Remember – there may be dozens or hundreds of websites that offer the same product or information, so if people can’t find their way around your site, they’ll find another one where they can.

2: Navigation

Assuming users will have to search your site for information, you must make two things clear: where they are and where they can go. The menu is the most common tool for navigation. It should be easily identifiable (familiar spots are towards the top of the page or on the left) and the text should clearly describe where it’s taking you. Once the user has navigated away from the home page, there are different ways to orient them, such as a large heading or a “bread crumb trail” (where each page you’ve visited is shown, i.e. Home > About Us > President). Navigation tools can be made dynamic with elements like rollovers, images and magnification, but don’t let your zest for a “flashy” site overshadow the importance of making it easy for users to get to the information they need.

3: The “KISS” Principle

It’s a lot less sexy than it sounds. The “Keep It Simple, Stupid” principle should be the foremost concern in any site design. In most cases, users are looking for specific information. You can offer alternatives, but it should be fairly simple to find the answer to the question that brought them to the site in the first place. Also, don’t overcrowd the site with unnecessary content. One of the most underestimated features of any design is white space. In terms of the web, it helps reduce the cognitive load for visitors and makes it easier to digest the information presented on the screen.

4: Effective Writing

The tone and style of writing can depend on your intended audience – a site geared toward kids will read differently than one aimed at industry partners. But there are a few general rules that can be followed for effective web writing. Avoid long blocks of texts, because most likely they won’t be fully read anyway. Keep your phrases short and to the point, using plain language. Hyperbole (and using words like “hyperbole”) is usually ineffective. And finally, proofread your site. Simple spelling and grammatical errors can ruin anyone’s credibility.

5: Consistency

Users want to know what will happen based on what usually happens. If a word or phrase is underlined, it should be a link – that’s what we have come to understand about the web. Similarly, different pages within your site should retain the same elements (colours, fonts, structure) or users will feel like they’ve taken a wrong turn and landed on another site. One of the newer developments is to make your logo a link back to the home page, which is also important in terms of usability. So while there is definitely room for innovation in website design, denying the users’ expectations of how the web works makes them feel disoriented, which in turn makes them feel insecure. And nobody likes that feeling.

If you have a website (and you should), your prospective clients or customers will likely go there first to find out what you have to offer, as well as to compare you with other businesses that offer similar products or services. So if you take one piece of advice about web design, let it be this: If they can’t find it in 3 clicks, they’re gone.