7 Examples of Good Web Design Page Layout

One of my favorite things about being a full-time project manager in addition to an Internet marketer is that I get some very good on-the-job training and networking opportunities at my nine-to-five.  For example, I've recently had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Susan Weinschenk, Chief of User Experience Strategy at Human Factors International and an expert in web design page layout.

Experts in Web Design

(Thank you! Please read our book referral disclaimer)In her recent book, Neuro Web Design: What makes them click? (New Riders Press), Dr. Weinschenk describes important aspects of usability and persuasive web design.  In plain terms, usability is the practice of ensuring that your website's layout and information is easily understood by your website visitors.  Persuasive design is the art and science of how to make your message more compelling, resulting in more website leads and sales.  Neuro Web Design was a great read and since then I've been looking at websites differently.

Practical Examples of Web Design

This week I came across an excellent example of good web design page layout in a site called Daily Mugshot.  Daily Mugshot is a free service that allows you to take a picture of yourself every day and then post them to a flipbook that you can share with your friends or embed on your website.  Today, I'm going to take you through seven examples of great web page design, thanks to Daily Mugshot.

 (Click to open a larger version in a new window)

7 Examples of Good Web Design Page Layout:

1. Home page link - It's now become best-practice to have your logo in the top-left corner of your website.  Clicking on the logo should bring visitors to the home page.
2. The "welcome mat" - Your website should have a section of the home page that introduces the visitor to your website.  You should give folks an idea of what your site is about and why they should be there.
3. Social proof - Visitors to your site want to know whether your product is any good or not.  Seeing other people who have taken the time to use Daily Mugshots sends a message that the site is worth it.
4. Search - Search is an important means of navigation for many web users.  A visible search box is a must of almost all websites.
5. Clear Call-to-Action - Your first goal in great web design page layout should be to provide a crystal-clear action you want your visitors to perform.  Notice how Daily Mugshot uses about three different visual cues to get you to sign up for their service.
6. Page Layout Navigation - Make sure your visitors don't get lost.  Provide clear navigation with intuitive page titles.
7. Clear Explanations - Be sure to use clear, concise language that your ideal customer/visitor would understand when you design and layout your web page.

Much to Learn

Great web design page layout requires that you take a lot of factors into account.  Neuro Web Design helped me realize that there is much to learn.  What are some of your favorite examples of good web design page layout?  

Do you have any thoughts or questions about this post?  We'd love to hear them.  Leave a comment below to continue the conversation.

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What's Your 2010 Online Marketing Resolution?

If you've been keeping up on the online marketing news and blog posts lately, you may have seen some of the various predictions for 2010.  For example, Top Rank posted their analysis of eMarketer's 12 online marketing predictions for 2010.  Also, AdWeek posted their media predictions for 2010.  And now that we have a better idea of what industry changes may lie on the road ahead, it's time start with resolutions.  Today on Big Picture Web, we ask you, "What's your 2010 online marketing resolution?"

What Do You Resolve to Do in 2010?

What online marketing goals do you have in 2010?  Is it time to start your blog?  Create a website?  Maybe you're ready to embrace social media through Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter?  Whatever it may be, please share your 2010 online marketing New Year's resolution in the comments below.  Let's make 2010 the start of a great new decade!

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4 Easy Online Reputation Management Secrets

A while back, I did a blog post on how easy it was to begin participating in the world of social media tools.  All you need to do is locate where conversations are happening about you on the web, learn how to monitor them, then learn how to participate and positively impact your brand's online reputation.  Since then there has been a recent expansion in the amount of tools available to aid in your online reputation management efforts.  Today on Big Picture Web, we'll walk you four easy tools used to monitor your online reputation.

1) Google Reader and RSS

Most online reputation management tools are delivered through either email or RSS ("really simple syndication").  While email is convenient and familiar to most, RSS allows you to see up-to-the-minute information and helps keep all your online reputation reputation management efforts more organized.  If you aren't currently using RSS to stay informed, you should be.  RSS has quickly become a well-established, yet often misunderstood communication tool.  Run out to Youtube and watch RSS in Plain English and Google Reader in Plain English.  You'll see the value and be ready to create a free Google Reader account in no time.

2) Search.Twitter.com

Most social media strategies these days involve Twitter to some extent.  And believe it or not, sifting the 140-character tweets can provide some incredibly valuable insights about what people are saying about your brand.  Your second online reputation management secret is to begin searching through Twitter (for free) on a regular basis.  You can actively search Search.Twitter.com on a schedule or set up a few RSS feeds to push notifications to you as they happen.  Just enter terms specific to your brand and see what results you encounter.

3) Google Alerts

Google Alerts is like Search.Twitter.com, but for the whole web as opposed to just Twitter.  See the most recent news events, web site content, videos and more.  Set up a free account with Google Alerts, then set up your alerts.  Include terms specific to your online reputation, typically related to your brand, product or services.  Again, you can choose to set up your alerts to come to you via email or RSS.  

4)  Trackur

Google Reader, Search.Twitter.com and Google Alerts are all free.  But if you want to spend a few bucks to reduce the time you spend performing online reputation management, you may want to set up an account with Trackur.com.  Trackur was created by Andy Beal, author of Radically Transparent and founder of the Marketing Pilgrim blog/website, both excellent sources of online reputation management news and information.  Trackur allows you to monitor your brands across the web and Twitter.  And comes with some extra tools that make reputation management easier, such as bookmarking and the ability to track and trend sentiment (i.e., are the conversations about you good or bad?).  Try their two week risk-free trial to see the extra benefits Trackur can bring to your online reputation management efforts.

Before you start blindly participating in social media, it's critical that you know the lay of the land.  Not doing so could make your reputation management efforts appear contrived and insincere.  I hope following the steps listed in today's post will help your company get started down the path of online reputation management.

Do you have any thoughts or questions about this post?  We'd love to hear them.  Leave a comment below to continue the conversation.

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Internet Marketing Planning in 3 Easy Steps

Marketers, small business owners and individuals are looking for ways to bring their message to the masses via the Internet more and more these days.  In fact, eMarketer recently published a report in which Forrester Research predicted a 17% compound annual growth rate in Internet marketing in the next five years.  But for many, planning your Internet marketing strategy can be difficult.  It can be all too tempting to skip planning and jump right into design.  But doing so will almost always lead to disaster.  Today, Big Picture Web brings you a post about the three things you need to develop a successful Internet marketing plan.

Internet Marketing Planning:  Easy as 1, 2, 3

With so many options today, it can be completely overwhelming to plan your online marketing strategy.  Do you need a Web site?  Should you be using Facebook and/or Twitter in your Internet marketing mix?  Should you be working to get more visitors from search engines?  Surprisingly, these tactics will line up at your feet if you start with a solid Internet marketing plan.  Start your plan today in three easy steps:

1. Define your Internet marketing goals. Successful Internet marketing plans start with the end in mind.  What is it you want to accomplish for your organization through your online marketing efforts?  Do you want to increase sales?  Are you trying to gain new customers or prospects?  Are you trying to better serve the customers you already have?  By clearly defining your objectives, you're one-third of the way to a successful Internet marketing plan.
2. Identify your ideal customer and their online goals.  To appeal to your potential customers, you must be able to think like them.  What are they trying to accomplish?  What's the best possible way to organize information about your company so that it is easy and intuitive to find for your Web site visitors?  In a world where we are overwhelmed by information and the competitor is just a click away, it's absolutely critical that you make your Web presence as straightforward, clear and appealing as possible to your customers.
3. Select only the Internet marketing tactics that meet the goals of you or your customer (or both!).  This final concept is very intuitive yet practiced less than one might think.  Why would you do something if it doesn't accomplish anything?  But you'd be surprised how often folks spend too much precious time and resources haggling over the smallest details or adding features that are "shiny" yet do nothing to help their bottom dollar.  Strongly consider this when putting together your Internet marketing plan.

Think about these three steps the next time you or someone your organization comes up with a new idea for the Internet marketing plan.  Just ask yourself, "How will this help us meet our own goals?  What about our customers' goals?"  If you can't come up with an answer to either of those questions, chances you probably shouldn't be including it in your Internet marketing planning activities.

 

Do you have any thoughts or questions about this post?  We'd love to hear them.  Leave a comment below to continue the conversation.

Choosing Content for a Usable Website

I did a great thing if you stayed on my website long enough to read the end of this sentence. You see, this site aims to be usable. And as you learn more about how to design a website, you'll see that helping your website visitors find your products and services more easily can lead to a dramatic positive impact on your business goals. How effective are websites in changing behavior, you say? "The average business metrics improvement after a usability redesign is now about 83%," according to a January 2008 survey. But choosing content for your website can be a challenge. Today, Big Picture Web brings you a crash course on usability and how to design a website.

How Effective are Websites in Changing Behavior?

Steve Krug is a well-known expert in the field of usability. He certainly knows how to design a website. His book, Don't Make Me Think, describes how people don't read websites like a book or magazine. They scan them for about fives seconds, more like a car speeding past a billboard. If they don't find what they want, they can quickly leave your website. If you learn how to design a website properly, you can grab your visitors' attention, clearly describe why they should do business with you and then give them the chance to so.

How to Design a Website

When choosing content for a website, you'll want to follow some standard website conventions. For example, always put your your company's logo in the upper-left corner of your website, and link it to your homepage for those that click on it. For an excellent visual on a these website conventions, check out UserEffect's Anatomy of a Usable Website. Their 25-point website usability checklist is also quite helpful. Choosing content for your website becomes a lot easier when you follow these simple guidelines.

Choosing Content for Your Website Made Easier

If you're new to website usability or choosing content for websites, there is much to learn. You'll see how an effective website can change the behavior of your visitors, enabling them to learn more about you and hopefully do more commerce too. Let your customers do business with you. If you're learning how to design a website and have a question, visit the resources in this article or post a comment with your thoughts.