Here at Pumpkin Web Design Manchester, we are Manchester’s leading web design professionals. We work with a variety of companies across Manchester, and the North West, including those in Blackburn and Chorley, to provide high quality web design solutions. As a result, we have produced this guide to everything you should know about structuring website content to improve the user experience.
Important considerations for improving the user experience with structured web content
There are a number of effective options to consider when structuring the website content, that can make a significant and positive impact on the browsing experience of your website users. These include:
- Categorizing the navigation options
- Using page hierarchy to guide website users
- Dividing page content
Categorizing navigation options to improve the user experience
The first thing you should consider in relation to structuring website content is the navigation bar. This should divide content into relevant categories for people to find the information they are looking for quickly and easily. You should also refrain from linking too many different pages to this, because an overload of choices can become confusing. Instead, categorize content into different areas, that are distinct from one another, and if necessary link to further content with button links within the page itself. You can then add a full sitemap to the footer, to help make navigation easier for crawlbots, to improve SEO, too.
Use page hierarchy to guide website users and improve the user experience
The content of each individual page itself should also be organised and structured in a way that makes it easier for potential customers and clients to find the information they need. One way to achieve this is by using page hierarchy. This means positioning the content in order of importance, or benefit to the website user. So the most important content is found at the top of the page, above the fold, and as you scroll down, the content follows a logical order. This can help direct your website users to the right content, as the page can flow smoothly through the different areas, with key features designed to stand out for each section.
Dividing page content to improve the user experience
Page hierarchy might be one option to structure the content, but even if you choose to use this method, you will still need to divide the content itself. There are a number of tried and tested methods to achieve this, including:
- Negative space- negative space is also known as white space, and this is the part of the web page that is not in use, or the space around and between elements, where the background can be seen. This can be an effective tool for diving content, especially text and image based content. By using negative space, you can separate these pieces of content, in a subtle way that doesn’t require any design tricks.
- Headings- you should be using headings to divide text content anyway, but if you choose the right typography for these, you can be sure that the heading will attract the eye of the website user, and indicate the switch in content.
- Content boxes- you can also use cards, or content boxes with different coloured backgrounds, different textures, or strong outlines, to divide website content clearly.
For more information or for professional web design support, get in touch with the team today, here at Pumpkin Web Design Manchester.