This was going to happen sooner rather than later. Google algorithmic updates have all focused on helping visitors find high quality websites, and the latest update is a step in the same direction. This one is going to have a marked effect on the layout of the web page.  Google has acted on user’s complaints about difficulty in coming across content on a particular website if it is packed to the brim with advertisements and design elements.

Users aren’t too happy about scrolling down a webpage to look at the content that they are interested in seeing. For them, this is a waste of time and Google, in a bid to ensuring that website visitors are promised the best user experience design that allows them to find the actual content easily as soon as they land on the website, has come up with an update. According to this update, if a website doesn’t have sufficient amount of content "above the fold" on the website, its ranking might be affected.

What this means is that if the space "above the fold" is populated by a slew of ads, it does not make for very good user experience and this is what Google wants to make right. The phrase "above the fold" refers to the upper half of the web page, or to put it more specifically, that part of the web page that a user can easily access without scrolling.

Now, placing advertisements "above the fold" is a common occurrence on most websites, this is because a website owners’ prime concern is to make their sites more profitable, and ads placed in prominent positions encourage monetization. But, excessive placement of such ads means the real content of the website is difficult to find. This update will have no impact on those websites that place ads "above the fold" in normal amounts.  This is the kind of amount that does not push the website content "below the fold".

This update will only impact those websites that display so many ads "above the fold" that they push the content down, so much so that visitors will have to scroll the page in order to have a look at it. Google estimated that less than 1% of searches will be impacted by this change. If a website’s rankings have been affected by this change, webmasters can relook their layout and make the necessary changes on the necessary webpage to ensure that the content on the page can be found immediately. Any change made, will be automatically reflected in the results on the search page. But, it’s important to remember that any layout update or its reorder will take some time to reflect on the SERPs and is dependent on various factors including the amount of webpages updated and also the crawlability of the content.

So, a great idea would be to fashion a website that gives a lot of importance to user experience so that this update doesn’t affect your website’s rankings adversely. Good user experience results in better conversions and reduces bounce rates and this is reason enough to focus on it.

A word of advice – Google has made no bones about the fact that its focus of attention is always on ensuring a better experience for website visitors. So, instead of making changes to your website, whenever Google comes up with an update in its algorithm, it is always better to give due importance to enhancing the user experience of your website, as much as possible.

Successful web design is always emphatic in the message that it is trying to deliver through the use of various design elements.  The concept of ‘emphasis’ is in marked contrast to that of ‘unity’ another important concept that contributes towards custom web design success. While the former involves designers ensures that a particular web design element stands out and draws the attention of viewers, the latter asks designers to ensure that all elements used for website design, come together to make an impression on the viewer.

Here we are going to talk about how you can emphasize certain elements of website design. Let’s take a look at 4 ways that will help make this possible.

The Art of Proper Placement

When you view a website what is the portion of the website that you look at first? Typically, it’s the center of the composition. So, what this means is that if you want to provide emphasis, you must place the design element right at the center of the layout. This is where it has the strongest possible chance of getting noticed. But, you could also think about using the top left corner of the web page to provide emphasis. This is yet another significant portion of the web page that garners a lot of attention.

Maintain Proper Flow

The idea behind maintaining a continuing flow with respect to design elements is to ensure that a viewer’s eyes move in one direction alone. At the end of this visual path that you have determined for the viewer, you can place the dominant feature. Such features will definitely catch the viewer’s eye and create a marked impression. Take for example the use of the common ‘arrow’ when you place an object at the end of the arrow, this object assumes tremendous importance.

Emphasis through Isolation

Proximity helps create unity, while isolation provides emphasis. Think of the Sahara with its endless sand dunes and an oasis in the middle of these sand dunes. Doesn’t the oasis create an impact? Well, the same brand of thinking works for website design as well. If you place an element in isolation, it is bound to stand out.  Your eyes and anybody else’s for that matter will be attracted to a design element that is surrounded by plenty of white space.

Contrast always comes to the rescue

Think about it, big and small, dark and bright, two colors that lie at the opposite ends of the color wheel etc. have helped provide emphasis, since time immemorial. The art of using two dramatically different graphic elements in a layout is bound to create an impression - More the difference, greater the element’s capacity to stand out. Disparate graphic elements are commonly used by web designers to provide emphasis.

These are just four ways of providing emphasis, and there are plenty more. It’s not absolutely necessary for you to follow these pointers for providing emphasis. All we have done is offer the most commonly used ways and the most easily incorporated of ideas that help provide emphasis. When it’s a matter of emphasis, you can get as creative as you like.

What’s so hot about Pinterest, that it has even the traditionalist internet users, who shy away from trying something new, wanting to try it out? In a web space already cluttered with numerous social networks, and dominated by the BIG TWO, will a new social network really command enough attention?  Only time will tell if Pinterest will have the wherewithal to create its own space in what is increasingly looking like saturated social space on the World Wide Web.

But there is also no doubt that Pinterest has begun luring social media fans with its concept and the features that it has on offer. Let’s take a look at what this social media platform is all about and what we can make of its features.

Here we go.

Pinterest in a Nutshell

Pinterest takes its name from a pinup board. The team behind Pinterest has made a virtual pinup board that helps organize all those inspiring and interesting images that you find on the World Wide Web. As it’s a social media platform, you can even share these images with your friends. In Pinterest parlance these images are called ‘Pins’ that can be added to a ‘Board’ customized and themed to suit your needs and requirements. You can create a ‘board’ on any and every topic that you can think off, without any limitations.

Pinterest can be called a voyage of discovery through the use of images. You can browse the pinboards created by other users who share similar interests and passion as yours, which helps you discover new things about your shared passion.

What you can do with Pinterest?

This is the key question isn’t it? Users no longer are happy just with a presence on a social media platform. What they are looking for is a way to practically use it to improve their lives in some form or the other. And Pinterest does help them do that in many different ways. If you are a photographer, you can build a whole portfolio with the help of Pinterest. If you are an architect, you can create a Board that has pictures of your best work. If you are a housewife, you can create a shopping list of things that you need to buy for your home through the week. The options are literally endless. At the end of the day, if don’t really have any clear purpose in mind, just pinning pictures of the really interesting stuff that you come across, not only on the internet but also in your daily life, is reason enough to use Pinterest.

Using Pinterest

The purpose is all well and good, but is it usable? Two words – It is. Here’s how you can pin stuff in Pinterest. It offers you something called the ‘Pin It Button’, in the form of a ‘drag and drop’ browser extension. So, in your travels through the web, if you come across an image that you like, all you need to do is click on the button and choose the pictures that you want to add to your Board. You will also be able to add some interesting text describing the picture. What’s more, the image doesn’t necessarily have to be from the internet. You can click a picture and use the Pinterest iPhone app to add the image to your Boards.

Taking a cue from the ‘Retweets’, you can even ‘Repin’ images that other users have posted on their boards.

The Social Perspective

Ok, so what’s the social angle to Pinterest? Well, it works on the belief that if you do something together, it is more fun. If you are pinning something on your Pinterest board, you are a Pinner, and you can find different Pinners to comment on their Pins or Repin an image that you like onto your board. You could even follow a board that you find interesting and get any new updates on that board. If you want to follow somebody on Pinterest, you don’t need to take permission of the Pinner, as it’s an open network. Also, as a Pinner, who is also on Twitter and Facebook, you can share your pins with the friends and followers on your respective networks on these two social medial platforms.

It’s not only about Pictures

Yes, the focus is on pictures, but you can pin videos also. You can even buy gifts on Pinterest and it’s also a great way to promote your small business. If you own a small business, it makes perfect sense for you to try out different avenues to ensure better and highly effective branding. Much like other social media platforms, a presence on Pinterest, will help you get in touch with people, who are not only looking for the kind of products and services you are selling, but also share your interests. It’s a win-win situation for your business.

Has your ecommerce website witnessed an explosion in sales this holiday season? Why are we asking this question? Well, according to experts, compared to 2010, online sales, this holiday season, went up by more than 15%. If your website hasn’t been at the receiving end of the online shopper largesse this year, then maybe, just maybe, there is something wrong with it.

There must be something wrong with the design of your ecommerce website, which might be interfering with its potential to generate sales. Let’s take a look at how you can improve the sales of your ecommerce website.

Design Should Allow Shoppers to Find the Product

No, it’s not that shoppers find your products expensive, or don’t like the visual appeal or design of your website or that they don’t really want to buy your products in the first place that is the reason behind your website’s failure. You will be surprised to note that, one of the primary reasons why shoppers don’t purchase a product from a particular ecommerce website is that they are unable to find the product that they want. Does your website conveniently guide users to their desired products? Be honest with yourself.

If it doesn’t, you need to improve it. A simple, clear, and convenient navigation should be able to do the trick.

Design Should Cater to Different Kinds of Shoppers

Believe it or not, there are different types of shoppers that your ecommerce website design must cater to; it must be the one size fits all, kind of design. It must cater to the requirements of the power shopper, the recreational shopper and also the reluctant shopper. Let’s take the case of power shoppers first, the kind of shoppers who know what they want and don’t want to waste any time when they shop. For them, an intuitive search bar is a great idea as it will keep providing suggestions as they type. All, in all, for them, the design must be able to make shopping quick and convenient.

Now for the recreational shopper who has all the time in the world when it comes to shopping and has a tendency towards impulse buying. So, a series of featured products, great products visuals, and unbeatable discounts will go a long way in vowing them. And now for the most difficult kind of shoppers; the ones that are reluctant to buy anything only, because of various concerns. Your website design has a better chance of converting them into customers if their fears regarding privacy, security, customer services and trustworthiness of the products are dispelled.

Conversion through Product Details Page

If and when, your website attracts the attention of shoppers, it needs to hold their interest. This can be done through many different ways. One of these ways is using high quality photography to showcase the products on the product details page. Something else you can do is sweetening the whole prospect of buying the products, for the prospective shopper. Some early bird discounts or reward points will definitely attract prospective buyers. It will also be a good idea to make your site more engaging by offering reviews and ratings; this also makes your ecommerce website achieve credibility and forge a solid reputation.  These are just some of the many ways that can help you showcase your products, in a way that is sure to captivate and convert.

But, It Doesn’t End Here

With the tips given above you have not just attracted prospective customers to your site, but the shopper centric ecommerce website design has ensured that they have added a whole list of products to their shopping carts. But don’t pop the champagne just yet. They still need to take the shopping cart through the checkout process. This is when the deal will be sealed. The payment process of the shopping cycle must be quick and painless and one of the ways of doing this is by offering one page checkouts. A long drawn out checkout process is never enjoyable, so cutting down on those pages makes perfect sense. Another great idea would be to do away with the need for registration, if the shopper wants to buy products on the site.

Tips are easier to read and very difficult to incorporate. When it comes to the website design of your ecommerce site, the tips given above are not going to be a cakewalk, but they aren’t impossible to implement, either. If you are looking for ecommerce success, it makes sense to put in some efforts in website design. The dividends will be fantastic.

The choice of the base color of any website is dependent on the purpose of the website. At times, the choice of the color might not entirely be in your hands, as a designer; the colors used in the web design might be dependent on the existing marketing collaterals of the company and also its logo. There are a number of clients who prefer choosing their colors for the design of their website; and rightly or wrongly, you will have to go along with it.

But, even if you have to go along with the color choice of the website owners, you can still ensure that you choose a color scheme that fits the needs and requirements of the website and its purpose. The standard color schemes that you can choose to use include, monochromatic, analogous, complementary, split complementary, triadic and double complementary.

Let’s take a look at each of these schemes in terms of their use in web design.

Monochromatic Color Scheme

A monochromatic color scheme involves the use of just one single base color in the various pages of the site. Of course, designers are able to use the various tints and shade of that color. You can choose to use different monochromatic color schemes for different pages of the site. There are some designers who take this route through the intuitive use of RGBA transparency. More importantly, you can choose to use a monochromatic design for one page, while in another you can go for analogous design. The use of multiple color schemes improves the visual appeal of your site and helps make it more engaging.

Analogous Color Scheme

You have a color wheel and there are colors adjacent to each other on that wheel. If you use colors lying adjacent to each other on that color wheel, you will be using the analogous color scheme. The idea is to use a large slice of the colors on the wheel and make them a part of the website’s design. The correct use of the analogous color scheme deepens the symbolism of the site and brings it out in all its glory.

Complementary Color Scheme

Choosing colors that are placed opposite each other in the color wheel, means you have chosen to go for a complementary color scheme. It gives rise to a unique combination of colors that if used wisely, will provide an interesting look and a solid foundation for the website design.  This doesn’t mean that such a color scheme must be bold; designers can tone it down so that the colors look more natural. Astute website designers couple complementary color schemes with artistic texture in order to create better visual impact.

Split Complementary, triadic and double complementary Color Schemes

As the names of these color schemes rightly suggests, these are just variations of the complementary scheme. If you want to use split complementary color scheme, you will need to choose two colors that lie adjacent to the complement of your chosen base color.  If you are after a triadic color scheme, it involves you choosing colors that are equally placed on the color wheel. This can easily be achieved if you choose colors that are placed one notch more on each side, with respect to the split complement.

Double complementary color scheme is just combining one complementary scheme with another one.

These are the standard color schemes and there are variants of the standard schemes that designers can also use. But, most designers are perfectly happy with the use of standards color schemes, as they make for a more focused approach towards website designing.