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Web Designer
Tips
'
Keep Your Navigation Simple! '
Navigation
must be simple. Since it's the backbone of your site, it's imperative that
visitors be able to understand it. Here are two tips on how to make
simplicity a reality in your site:
1.
Your Link Titles Need To Be Understandable
Visitors need to know exactly what link to click on for the info they
need. Unfortunately, visitors frequently get confused and don't understand
what a link means. Consequently, they aren't sure what info they'll find
at the other end of the link.
Often, a link name that makes complete sense to you will mean nothing to
the visitor. For example, I once used a link called "Resources"
in the navigation bar of a site for a client. This section of the site
contained various articles and links to outside sites with helpful
information.
However, after a little bit of testing, I discovered that most people had
no idea what I meant by "Resources". They didn't know what kind
of information was in that area. Also, when visitors tried to look for
articles, they didn't think to check the Resources section.
In other words, the link wasn't doing anyone any good.
The difference between your understanding of a term and a visitor's
understanding of the same term can be rather drastic. This happens because
you are so close to your own business and your own site.
It's important to remember that visitors don't know nearly as much about
your business as you do. They often have no background knowledge, and they
might not know standard terms in your industry. Sometimes, you'll have to
work to come up with terms and phrases for your links that are meaningful
to the visitor.
Here's
one general principle: Don't use clever terms.
Although clever attention-getters often work well in the offline world,
it's different online. In character with their generally hurried attitude,
web users want to know exactly where they are going and what they will
find when they click on a link. They don't like guessing games and are
usually not enticed by clever lead-ins. What lies beyond them is simply
not clear.
Cleverness doesn't belong in navigation unless you're positive the meaning
will be understood by everyone. You should avoid anything that isn't
straightforward and clear. Steer away from any terms that obscure what
your links are really about.
Also, you should be very careful about using industry-specific terms. You
might be surprised to find out how much of your lingo doesn't make sense
to people who aren't familiar with your industry. Carefully evaluate each
of your links to make sure you're not using a confusing term.
2.
Navigation Options Need To Be Kept To A Minimum
The second way you can simplify your navigation is to make the number of
options manageable. Visitors tend to get overwhelmed if you give them too
many choices. They aren't able to focus. Rather than seeing each
individual option, they only see a mass of links.
An additional reason not to include too many links is that you ordinarily
shouldn't send visitors in a lot of different directions. If you've
established a primary goal for your site (you have, haven't you?), your
site should revolve around accomplishing that goal. So it's in your best
interest to keep the options down. That way, you're able to steer your
visitors in the direction you want them to go.
Keep your navigation menus to 5-7 options or less. That's the max number
you can have without losing your visitors' concentration. Any more than
that, and they aren't able to discern an individual choice.
If you find yourself having more than 5-7 options in each of your
navigation menus, try to pare them down. It's better to simplify the list
and make sure visitors can evaluate everything than to cram everything in
when visitors will miss most of it.
If you really need more than 7 links, group the links into a few
categories. Although this can still get overwhelming, it helps
significantly if you categorize links for visitors. They can latch onto
one category and narrow it down from there, rather than having to deal
with the whole list at once.
Overall, try to objectively evaluate your navigation from the point of
view of a visitor. If you can, get input from people who aren't familiar
with your site or your business. They'll be a great resource in helping
you determine whether or not your links are confusing or overwhelming.
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