Website Navigation - Some Tips

 Do you have a website for your company or organization? Is it easy to navigate or is it a labyrinth of twists and turns just waiting to confuse users?

Navigation on the web can make or break the user experience of your website. Pulling up the homepage and getting lost in links, scrolling endlessly through content, and having to look for desired information all create troublesome experiences. Here are some ways that you can keep navigation simple and easy to learn.

- Keep menus up-to-date with clear categories (i.e., "Products") so people know what they're looking at when they click on those links

- Show only relevant information on each page (i.e. "Login" should not be linked to "Register")

- Use navigation bars, which are a list of links that allows users to browse through sections of your site quickly.

- Use images in your menu navigation or links. The unique graphical features will help create a memorable experience for your users.

- Use smart URLs (internet addresses that when clicked on, take the user to a specific page). It is important that the address is clear and can be easily remembered by the user. Smart URLs help the searcher find what they are looking for quickly and easily. For example, www.companyname.com/category/productname will take you directly to that product's page which you may have customized with an image or description.

- Keep your navigation consistent. Use the same navigation system in every section of your website. If you have a large website, build navigation into each page, allowing users to get to where they need to go quickly and easily.

- Be smart with color when creating menus and other navigational components. For example, do not choose a color scheme for your website that makes it hard to read the text on your links or titles on your site's menu; if you find that white text on black backgrounds is hard to read, try changing the colors around (such as using black text with a white background) or using shades of gray or light blue instead of pure white or pure black.

- Keep navigation easy to access for users who cannot use a mouse. For example, you can use simple buttons on your menus or create a user-friendly text format. This is one of the most painless ways to improve the navigation of your site.

The article above has been written by Toni Webb . Toni Webb is a professional writer and expert in website design (currently working on her next book "Today's Top Ten Websites"). This article is copyright protected and may not be used without permission from the author. If you have any questions about this article please contact the author at toniwebbs@yahoo.com . Thank you for your kind attention to this article. If you feel this article is helpful to you and your business please donate any amount of money to help Toni's work. PayPal: Click For PayPal Website: Your donation going towards studies and writing research articles like the above that offer free solutions for website design. Article Source: EzineArticles Submission Date: August 02, 2003

Please email me (toniwebbs@yahoo.com) if you have any questions or comments about how to improve this article or the site in general. Please note I am a busy person, so I am unable to respond to all emails concerning subjects other than websites, so please be patient with me if your email does not get answered immediately.

Conclusion: Conclusion

There you have it, some of the many ways that you can improve your website navigation in order to build a memorable experience for your users. If you have any other navigation tips or suggestions please feel free to share them with us at toniwebbs@yahoo.com . Thank you and don't forget to donate if you find these tips helpful. Toni Webb is a professional writer (specially focusing on topics like SEO, website design and writing) that offers free advice and articles for those looking for more information on these subjects. If you have any questions or comments about this article please contact the author at toniwebbs@yahoo.com ..