Website Design & Development

When designing and building websites I definitely put an emphasis on the aesthetics of the site. Its very important to me that the site is eyecatching and stands out, visually, from it's competitors. Its crucial in this day and age when everyone is getting online that the sites I build look impressive and stand out from the crowd, yet are functional and simple to navigate.

I think it's so important that an attractive website engages the viewer and evokes a positive (emotional) response. My background in graphic design means I place a great emphasis on an attractive mix of text and images. The first impression is so important. If the viewer likes what they see they will be more inclined to stay and look further and to make a purchase if its an ecommerce site.

I personally like to see a gallery of sorts within a website as the old adage ‘a picture paints a thousand words’ definitely rings true here. A well executed gallery can do a lot to showcase a company and its products. For example, its a fact that the viewer will tend to engage with a site and a company if there are actual photos of the directors and/or staff.

On a technical note, building a website with Cascading Style Sheets allows me to produce a very flexible design and layout, while cutting down on bloated html code. Just one piece of the optimisation jigsaw, but a very important piece. Google likes CSS! Google doesn’t like old school ‘table layouts.

Responsive Website Design

A responsive website design is of growing importance as so many people are now viewing on mobile devices whether mobile phone or tablet. A responsive design is optimised for these devices automatically responding to the screen size viewed on. More on responsive website design can be found here.

It is also crucial that the website ties in with the overall look and branding of the company. The website should sit comfortably alongside the printed material that has also been designed. A successful brand demonstrates this. At Sixmile Design I build eye catching and aesthetically pleasing websites that are tailored to the clients needs and are easy to navigate.

This article at the website 'A List Apart' sums this up...

"Another body of web user experience research shows that website users are powerfully influenced by aesthetics, and that positive perceptions of order, beauty, novelty, and creativity increase the user’s confidence in a site’s trustworthiness and usability. Recent design writing and interface research illustrate how visual design and user research can work together to create better user experiences on the web: experiences that balance the practicalities of navigation with aesthetic interfaces that delight the eye and brain. In short: there’s lots of evidence that beauty enhances usability." Patrick Lynch

The full article is at: www.alistapart.com/articles/visual-decision-making/