Archive for the ‘Look’ tag
Designing Your Blog
Your blog is an extension of you. What you write in your blog is as important as what does your blog look like. Is your blog a reflection of what you are writing and you? A blog may be essentially an online journal displayed in reverse chronological order but it is also a website which requires the same attention to detail any other website requires. It also requires the same design elements as a regular website which does not also function as a blog.
Bloggers have decisions to make regarding design elements of the blog such as colors and layout, fonts and the inclusion of advertisements. Although many blog software programs provide a variety of templates which make designing a blog rather simple, blogs can also be highly customized by bloggers who possess some programming skills. This article will discuss some of the basic design considerations bloggers encounter.
The colors and layout of a blog is one of the most obvious design considerations bloggers must consider when starting or re-designing their blog. Bloggers may use a solid color background, blocks of different colors in the background or pictures or textures in the background. These background elements can be any color imaginable. However, bloggers who are considering the colors to use in their blog should consider using colors which will be aesthetically appealing to most blog visitors. This is important because the use of garish colors which are harsh on the eye can result in diminished blog traffic.
This is a Fall Sunset Over the Rocky Mountains as Seen from Denver CO 2007
The layout of the blog should also carefully be considered by the blogger. The blog should be arranged in a fashion which is appealing to blog visitors, suits the subject of the blog and is presented in a logical manner which is easy for visitors to follow. Again, this is important because failure to use a layout which meets these criteria may result in blog visitors choosing not to visit the blog anymore because the layout is confusing or unappealing.
Bloggers have a number of options available to them when selecting fonts to use in their blog. These options include the font chosen, the text size and the color of the text. Bloggers should consider choosing a font which works well with the overall design of the layout of the blog and suits the subject matter of the blog but also is a font which common. This is important because blog visitors may have trouble viewing the font if the blogger selects a unique font which is not common. The text size and colors of the text should also be carefully considered. These elements are primarily important for readability. Text size should be set so members of the target audience can easily read the text. For example a blogger with senior citizens as the target audience may opt to use a text size slightly larger than usual. The colors used for the text should also be selected to enhance readability. One way to do this is to select colors which are appealing to the eye but also contrast with the background color.
Bloggers must also consider the inclusion of advertisements when they are designing their blogs. This includes determining whether or not to include blogs. Once this decision is made, bloggers who opt to include advertisements must carefully consider how and where they wish to display these advertisements. Advertisements can be displayed in various locations throughout the blog and can be designed to be discrete or obvious depending on the preferences of the blogger. Advertisements can also be a variety of sizes and shapes and are highly customizable in a number of different ways.
About the Author:
John T Adams is just your average guy who has been fortunate to have made a buck or two from the internet. There is nothing difficult about it so visit my website to learn how.
I fancy myself as being a good writer and I have 5 blogs where I write on how to make money on the Internet from a Home Based Business – Blogging Income – Affiliate Marketing and I would be honored if you would visit my blog and learn more on how this can be done.
One last for you to do is click here now to receive my F*R*E*E eBook, more internet income making information and product support and help from me.
Take another Look at Your Website
Sometimes we take it for granted that our website design is flawless and it will have millions flocking to it because it looks so great. You need to give your site a look every once and again to see that you agree that it is looking good. Run through all of the functions of the website to make sure they are working correctly and all results are what is expected.
The first method is to make sure the typography of your content is suitable. If you have large blocks of text, make sure to use CSS to space out the lines accordingly. The longer a single line of text is, the greater the line-height of each line should be. Also, make sure the font size of your text is big enough to read easily. Some sites have 10-pixel-tall text in Verdana font; while that may look neat and tidy, you have to really strain your eyes to read the actual text.
This is Mt Hood Taken 2010-06-14
Make it easy for visitors to find content that they want on your site. If you have thousands of articles on your site and a certain visitor wants to find one single article from that pile, you have to provide a feasible means to enable visitors to do that without hassle. Be it an SQL-driven database search engine or just a glossary or index of articles that you have, providing such a feature will make sure your visitors can use your site with ease, but know for a fact by taking another look at your website.
Ensure that your site loads fast if you do not want to lose visitors. Most internet users will leave a website if it doesn’t load completely within 15 seconds, so make sure the crème de la crème of your website is delivered to the visitors as soon as possible to retain their attention.
Last of all, test each and every link on your site before it goes online. There is nothing more effective in tarnishing your professional image than broken links, so be very careful about that.
About the Author:
John T Adams is just your average guy who has been fortunate to have made a buck or two from the internet. There is nothing difficult about it so visit my website to learn how.
I fancy myself as being a good writer and I have 5 blogs where I write on how to make money on the Internet from a Home Based Business – Blogging Income – Affiliate Marketing and I would be honored if you would visit my blog and learn more on how this can be done.
One last for you to do is click here now to receive my F*R*E*E eBook, more internet income making information and product support and help from me.