Navigation is one of the integral aspects in web designing service. With mediocre graphics and customary designing elements easy-to-navigate websites win better credibility among the targeted visitors. In the following paragraphs, we will discuss certain basic features of effective navigation in web design service.
It's Visitor First
The core principle of user-friendly navigation is that the design should be in accordance to the visitors' convenience. Do not prioritize on the look and feel of the website and sacrifice the navigation for it. Avoid using your industry jargons or classification titles as in the navigation bars, as this might drive away your visitors.
Navigation is the tool that helps the visitors to explore the entire website and it is astute navigation designing technique that might empower your credibility and entice your end-users.
Provide Multiple Options for Navigation
Every single visitor has his own way of surfing a website and therefore it is wise to provide multiple navigation options for the targeted visitors. This will enable the visitors to navigate through the website at their ease.
Don't Leave Visitors in Blank
Navigation of a webpage should provide a clear idea to the visitors about the exact location in the webpage. Simply think of a situation: you have just landed in a new city and need to reach the destination with the help of a map. At such scenario, a hand-drawn map might be the right guide to take you to your destination and you need a proper map lay-out to contemplate your present position and discover the roads to reach your destination. This fundamental is also applicable in navigation design.
Navigation History
Providing navigation history to help the visitors keep track of the pages they have previously is another key thing. Your website's navigation should preferably appear in hypertext rather than graphical form. Hypertext actually changes the color of links that have already been clicked. While purple is the standard color for the clicked ones, blue is the hypertext color of the non-clicked ones. You need to keep more of navigation in the hypertext to help the users know the places which have been already navigated.
Do Not Mislead
As an entrepreneur, you should never ask the visitors to perform something that seems difficult or impossible to them. For instance, never lead them to false navigation paths, or make them fill up the web-form same as the length of full-grown Anaconda or ask them to fill in their ancestral details. Do not annoy the visitors by allowing those pop-ups to appear on the screens or use distracting colors and animations in the WebPages. The rule of thumb is to follow a minimalist and simplest approach and craft a lay-out that not only appeases the visitors visually as well as enrich their experience.
Navigation can be simple as well as complex and it varies from one website to the other. There are no preset rules for organizing the navigation as it will vary as per the functional needs and requirements of the site. As a matter of fact, designing the navigation is an art in itself, and the web designers actually develop their skills after gaining experience.