I learn something new about website copywriting every day.
Over at Smashing Magazine they’ve put together a list of 10 Useful Usability Findings and Guidelines.
The first tip is to put form labels above the field. It makes sense because we fill out forms from top to bottom.
Looks like I’ll have to email my website designer and get him to tweak my forms!
Other pearls of wisdom include:
- Your website design is a credibility indicator. That’s right, people really do judge a book by its cover. Ditto the quality of your website content.
- These days people DO scroll website pages. But you should still leave your most important information (i.e. your value proposition) above the fold on your home page.
- Blue is the best colour for links. Looks like my designer will be getting some more work!
- White space on a web page improves comprehension by almost 20% and influences user satisfaction and experience. But remember, white space on a website is like silence on the radio: a little bit goes a long way!
I think this sentence is a great summation of how to approach website usability: “While giving your website a unique design is great, when it comes to usability, doing what everyone else is doing is best.”
Charles Cuninghame – Web Copywriter
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