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Top 6 Web Design Clichés to Avoid
Top 6 Web Design Clichés to Avoid
There are several elements used by designers in web design that are highly overused and diminish the unique aspect of the website. Some of the most clichéd web design tricks include Flash, stock images and white background. These aspects should be avoided or should be used in moderation to keep the uniqueness of the website intact and to help it stand ahead of its competitors.
Sydney,
NSW,
Australia
(prbd.net)
14/11/2011
Repetition is always boring and in web design it can mean the demise of the website. You can find several websites and web pages that are designed using clichéd elements that make the site look obsolete and out-dated.
In order to add freshness to your web design, it is important to become more innovative. The web pages of your site should have a distinctive appeal about them so that the visitors are able to identify the pages even without reading the content. Having uniform and overused web design tricks no longer work in today’s competitive times. In Sydney, you can find several web designers who claim to build outstanding designs for your websites; however, most of them use commonplace templates and design elements all over the website.
Discussed below are some of the web design clichés that you should avoid in order to stand out from the crowd and gain prominence on the Internet-
1. Flash pages
During its introductory days, Flash was extremely popular and people found it trendy to have a Flash introduction on the web pages, especially the Home page, of their websites. Sometimes Flash websites would take longer than usual to load and people would have to go through the annoying procedure every time they visited the site. Flash-based websites saw a drastic fall in visitors and conversion rate and it was found that Flash introductions only serve to annoy visitors and delay them from getting to the main point, i.e., getting information about the company/services and making some purchase. While many of web designers have realised that usage of Flash should be minimalistic, there still are surprisingly a large percentage of websites that are loaded with Flash.
2. Stock Images
The common handshake image or the globe or the call centre lady- these are all highly overused images that need to be rested now. These images make the website look commonplace and boring. These days there are several websites from where you can purchase high quality images and pictures for your website, instead of using commonly available images. Highlight the uniqueness of your company and business by using unique and attractive images.
3. White background
Colours always attract attention and yet most of the websites have white backgrounds. This may be due to lack of imagination or personal preference. But the black and white contrast is the most clichéd web page design that one can have. While there is nothing wrong in having a white background in the web design, some use of creativity and colours can make a plain website look lively and attractive.
4. Wet floor/reflection/shadow effect
Wet floor effect is history and shouldn’t be used in websites of modern times. Since Apple used this effect for one its products, it had become a rage. However, the trend is soon dying…and thank god for that. Though it seems to be a nice gimmick, it is something that should not be overused.
5. Big fonts
There was a time when web designers used really small fonts, but with monitor resolutions increasing, the font sizes have also increased- and in some cases, it has increased to a large extent. In order to make a bold statement, you can find many website designs that have huge fonts. While big fonts are eye-catchy and bold, they should not be used too often and all over the website. Strategic use of big fonts can be effective in a website design.
6. ‘Click Here’
This is a widely used call-to-action button in web design. While the purpose of this button is to entice people to take a positive action, it is wrongly worded. When you say ‘Click Here’ it creates ambiguity about the whole message. The visitor is unaware of the action that will be performed by clicking on the link. Instead of such a redundant and mysterious term, you can use phrases such as ‘Contact Us,’ ‘Read more about our services’ etc.
About
Sigma Infotech (www.sigmainfotech.com.au) is a web design firm that understands taking business to the web. Our website development team includes the best website designers, web developers, application developers, web designers, graphic designers, and search engine optimisers who can design and customise a website design to suit the needs of your unique business.
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