There are many components that go into making up good website design. Having said that, there are four major design principles that have the greatest impact on the overall design of the site. These four design components are as follows: emphasis, balance, unity and rhythm. To build a website that has pleasing design features and is highly effective in getting its message across, each of these four components has an important role to play.
Balance
First of all we're going to look at the principle of 'balance', which illustrates how the different colors, text and images of the website are coordinated. A web page needs to have a high degree of visual interest but at the same time should not overwhelm the viewer with too many conflicting design elements. Each part of the page has its own visual emphasis that is dependent on the color, shape or size of the images or the text blocks. This is not to say that good balance on a website is simply achieved by having all the elements placed symmetrically on the page layout. For example, you might create good balance by having an image on the right hand side of the page with a strong block of text on the left hand side. An even more challenging design principle is achieved with asymmetrical balance. This is done by combining different objects on each side of the page with each of these elements having a different visual weight color, size or shape. An illustration of this kind of asymmetrical balance might involve placing a strong visual component in the middle of the page where the balance might be achieved by adding lighter element on the outside edge of that same page.
Emphasis
The next style element we're going to look at is 'emphasis', which is intended to draw the viewer towards the focal point of the page. In other words you want the most important design elements to really stand out on the page. Quite frequently the focal point is an element that is unique from the other components on the page. Of course there are a number of ways that emphasis can be achieved, for example you might use a large, bold font or you may opt for using high contrast colors for a picture. Whichever way you decide to highlight a component on your web page, the final result should be that your visitors attention is focused on the area that you want to emphasize.
Unity
The next of the style elements were going to examine is 'unity'. This can be defined as how all the different components on the page appear to be very coherent and that the page has an unified structure. Another way to express this might be that each of the elements on the page: the headers, sub headers, pictures, other graphical effects and the various text blocks all appear to be part of the same cohesive idea. Unity can be accomplished on the page by using the same font, colors that match or by using similar design elements throughout the page.
Rhythm
The final element were going to look at is called 'rhythm'. Rhythm can be defined as how the various visual components can be seen by your visitors as having an unified pattern. The idea here is to attempt to generate a consistent pattern or structure to the design of the page. For example the continuous repetition of the same components creates an even, smooth rhythm to the page, whereas abrupt or a contrasting elements in the text or the graphic images can produce a much more active or upbeat pace. The end result should be that your visitor should feel an overall sense of coherence in your website even though there may well be differing design elements and styles on each page.
The reality is that people visiting your website for the first time will gain an immediate impression of the design priciples. They subconsciously rely on visual cues to assess the overall balance and harmony of the web page. This assessment contributes towards their decision on whether to stay and explore your website in more depth or to immediately hit the 'back' button and search for another site. If the website is coherent and visually appealing and appears to have intuitive navigation, they are much more likely to explore the site further, buy your product or service or sign up for your newsletter. They're also much more likely to become engaged with your company and return to your website at some future time.
Author Resource:
Visit our Website for more Articles and Videos at Video Ad .
View our unique promotional Video: YouTube for Business Video Ad . 30 Second Video Marketing specializes in finding small or mid-sized businesses new customers. We can help you with Video Marketing. View our site for additional information on how we can help you to get more customers for your business.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/rss.jpg "XML Feed For RSS")