For website designers, it’s important to keep the clients happy and keep them coming back or sending referrals. However, this is not an easy task and can’t be achieved until you employ the following virtues while designing any website as the following.

1. Know the purpose and goals of a website before starting to design, perhaps the audience.
2. Plan the website layout according to the client’s perspective and interaction.
3. Choose colors and color combination very carefully, go for browser safe colors.
4. Keep the font style and size consistent throughout the website, maintain typography.
5. Keep navigation and menu structure simple and clear, properly organized with sub-menus if any.
6. Websites main header is the first impression, so make it stand out. Speak a bit louder.
7. Divide content into sections and paragraphs using headings and bullets. This increases the content’s readability and impression.
8. Use interesting images that compliment the website and integrate with its whole theme. Induce call to action.
9. Each page of the website should have appropriate title and Meta tags to help rank well in search engines.
10. Search box option is a must to help user find relevant information on the website.

Having a good website is crucial for business owners. Therefore, follow the above mentioned guidelines the next time you design or redesign any website.

Wordpress is the most frequently used Content Management System (CMS). The beauty of Wordpress is that it allows maximum customization to everyone either freely hosted by Wordpress.com itself or standalone on your own host.  However, you can do a lot more customization if you install wrodpress with some host. Below, listed are several Wordpress frameworks which ease the way to customization and making the wordpress platform according to your needs either for themes, layout, configuration, plug-in etc.

Wordpress Theme Frameworks

WordPress Theme Generator – An online wordpress theme generator that requires nothing except choosing colors and fonts. It does not require any coding knowledge or skills. You simply need to select the colors and fonts to get a wordpress theme of your choice.

Thesis Theme for WordPress – It is a comprehensive wordpress framework that does not come free but gives out a lot benefit.

Blank WordPress Themes – Not actually a framework but indeed a collection of wordpress themes which are just empty and be used as necessary. It is collection two- and three-column blank themes.

Carrington – A free wordpress theme framework that carries two browser versions and a mobile version for maximum support and compatitibility.

WordPress PSD Framework – A free PSD framework that includes the common wordpress elements for theme and other development concerns.

Thematic – It is the most advanced and used wordpress theme framework. It allows maximum feature that worth a lot. The more good is that it is freely available.

Sandbox – An old aged empty framework which can be topped simply with CSS. It is an excellent source for beginners.

OnePress Community – A simple wordpress theme framework that supports BB themes too.

WP Framework – It is a blank wordpress theme framework with least and minimal formatting.

Whiteboard – A basic and simple wordpress theme development framework that can be used for sophisticated themes design and development.

The Buffet Framework – A wordpress framework for easy theme development. It is quite simple and straight framework which can be used friendly for development.

Website design is quite a debated topic over the last decade with tremendous amount of discussion on what’s right and what’s wrong, what should be done and what not. Despite so much knowledge, here are the 10 deadly sins many web designers commit even today. Check them out.

1. Too Many Clicks: The one thing users can’t stand is clicking extensively before reaching the actual product they’re seeking for. To avoid this user irritation, make information to products easily reachable and upfront on the web page.

2. Being “Overly” Creative: This mistake is often seen with beginners who make a mess while proving themselves to be a creative web designer. Admit it, all beginners make this mistake. If today you’re an experienced designer, you may recall your initial projects to get what I mean. By overly creative, it means unnecessary and extensive use of colors, images, blocks etc.

3. Keeping Search Engine Optimization an Afterthought: Always integrate your search engine optimization practices during the designing phase. If you decide to get your site designed before the SEO, there are chances you won’t achieves goals of any.

4. Broken Links: Broken links = 404 error page = biggest turn off for users. A website that contains broken links is a bad impression to visitors and perhaps the major cause of lost sales. Also, the Search Engines will be unable to list your page if it contains any broken links.

Need more about 404 Not Found Pages? Check out How to Deal 404 Pages Pleasing and Funny

5. Wrong Choice Colors: Go slow with colors and avoid loud contrasting colors. If you have a website with loads of information for the user to read, make extensive use of white. It’s better to use light background with dark text rather than doing it in a reverse manner.
6. Inconsistent Typography: Keep the font style and size consistent throughout your website. If your homepage carries an Arial font with size 10, make sure all your pages follow the same.

7. High Loading Time: High loading time mostly occurs when you’ve built your website using extensive images/graphics/flash. Keep the use of such graphic/flash to its minimum to avoid this problem, better to be the most optimal.

8. Browser Compatibility: Conduct a browser compatibility test of your website to know how others can see your website using different browser.

9. Outdated Content: Content of the website plays the role of a selling copy. Outdated web content may not only affect your business but also your business credibility.

10. No Contact Details: Lastly, if your website offers no way for the user to contact you, it’s useless for you to even have a website! Always put your complete contact details upfront.

Avoid these dreadful mistakes while designing your website and enjoy a profitable web presence.

With the New Year rolling in, the old trends of web design are pretty much rolling out. The entire web community has become vigorous to bring up something unique and make a name in this wild and ever changing world of the three W’s. To keep your users interested in your business (whatever it is), you’ve got to integrate new elements to your existing website, or completely give it a drastic makeover to suit the upcoming trends in the year 2010. For a start, here are the things you can imply.

Gigantic Logos and Headers

This is probably the best alternative to all the flashy flash you want to use on your website. Make note and remember it, “flash is outdated” so better not use it in your 2010 website design. You can use a huge banner instead. This way, the first page of your website will give a one-image impression like that of flash, but instead of the annoying clicking your user will simply have to scroll down to get the information.

Magazine Layout

Since the internet users are inclined more towards entertainment and interesting short articles, web designers can profit this interest factor by creating magazine type layout, where all information is displayed attractively and briefly like that in a glossy magazine.

Hand Drawn Sketches

This is a big break to the traditional graphics and illustrations you find on the web everywhere. It gives simple, unique and personalized look to your website visitors. Similar to hand drawn images, handwriting style is also gaining much popularity.

Typography

This aspect is increasingly gaining popularity and is highly recommended for your 2010 web design. Instead of using the regular fonts, it’s always better to try some larger, more happening fonts to make yourself stand out.

One Page Designs

Giving your website a “business card” look is another web design trend for future. This will eliminate the nasty experience of navigation and will give the user all info at one place. This kind of design will also help eliminate the needles material from your website.

Application of Large Images and Pictures

Large images and illustrations will be used as an invitation for the visitors. Exciting images have played a contemporary role in attracting website visitors and keeping their interest build up, this process will continue more comfortably by designers in 2010.

Replacing Icons For Text

A small icon representing the whole section instead of using words is also quite appealing and recognizable for users. This also increases the chance of people to spot that specific section easily.

Enough White Space

White backgrounds are the best choice for your website and perhaps a safer choice too. To make anything prominent and make your website a less hurtful setting for the users eyes, always prefer white or nude background colors.

The coming year is supposed to rock the boat of web design in many many ways! However, following the above given design ideas can give your website the trendy makeover it needs for the year 2010.