Website Design: Build Something People Actually *Want* to Use
What Are We Even Talking About?
Ready to build a website that doesn't just "exist" but actually works for your visitors? This section is your crash course in website design best practices - from aesthetics to usability - so your site isn't just another digital paperweight.
Whether you're building from scratch or overhauling an existing disaster, good design is your non-negotiable foundation. It's the silent salesman, the virtual first impression, and the unspoken vibe check your users make the second the page loads.
Why You Should Actually Care
Because design is the first impression - and if your site looks like it was built in 2009, people will judge. Harshly. Visitors decide within seconds whether they trust you, and most of that judgement happens before they even read a word.
Good design:
Builds trust
Keeps users engaged
Guides users to take action (buy, sign up, contact you)
If your navigation sucks, your colours are jarring, or your buttons are hiding, you're bleeding conversions. And no - users won't tell you. They'll just bounce.
Make It Suck Less: The Practical Stuff
Make It Eye-Catching (But Not a Visual Migraine)
Grab attention - don't assault the eyeballs. Use bold colours, strong visuals, and a layout that leads the eye naturally across the page.
Think modern art gallery, not MySpace circa 2006. Good visuals make your site memorable - and tools like Figma, Canva, or Adobe XD can help you mock it up before you start breaking things in code.
Simplicity Always Wins
No one wants to dig through visual chaos to find what they came for. White space is not wasted space - it's clarity.
The simpler your design, the easier it is for users to focus on what matters: your message, your value, your call to action.
Consistency Is Comforting
Use the same layout, colour palette, and type hierarchy across every page. Consistency builds trust - and makes your site feel professional, not thrown together in a weekend.
No random font changes. No colour roulette. No different menu layouts on every page. Pick a look and stick to it.
Typography: Your Silent Vibe Check
Fonts matter. They set the tone before anyone reads the words.
Are you casual? Elegant? Authoritative? Whatever it is - match your typography to your brand voice. Keep it readable, especially on small screens. Two fonts max. Use Google Fonts or Adobe Fonts and don't get cute unless you know what you're doing.
Design for Mobile First
More than half your traffic is probably coming from phones. If your layout breaks on mobile - congratulations, you're invisible to most people.
Start your design with mobile. Scale it up from there. Tools like Google's Mobile-Friendly Test or just pulling out your own phone will tell you everything you need to know.
Navigation Should Be Stupidly Obvious
No puzzles. No games. Navigation should just make sense.
Use clear, descriptive labels. "Click Here" means nothing. "Browse Projects", "Get a Quote", "Read Case Studies" - that's the stuff.
And please don't hide your menu behind a hover trap or abstract icon. Bonus points for sticky nav bars.
Use Great Images (But Don't Go Nuts)
Visuals matter. A lot. But they're not the star - they support the story. High-quality, relevant images add polish and clarity. Low-res junk or overused stock photos do the opposite.
Use Unsplash, Pexels, or - better yet - your own. And always compress them. Nobody wants to wait for a full-res TIFF to load over 4G.
Make It Actually Usable
This is where most pretty websites fail. Design isn't just about how it looks - it's about how it works.
Can people find what they need? Can they submit your form in 30 seconds or less? Can they browse without getting lost?
If not, you've built a digital museum: pretty, but pointless.
Get Feedback Before You Go Live
You are not your user. Just because it feels logical to you doesn't mean it will to them.
Ask people to click around. Watch them try to do what your site is meant to do. Where they get stuck? That's your fix list.
Stuff People Always Get Wrong
Dark text on dark background (please stop)
Menus hidden behind six layers of clicks
A site that breaks on mobile
Twenty-seven font styles (because chaos)
CTAs buried under content no one reads
Next-Level Design (For Overachievers)
Build a style guide to keep things consistent long-term
Add microinteractions for delight (hover states, button animations, etc.)
Run A/B tests on your homepage and CTAs
Use component libraries to keep dev handoff fast and clean