Meryl's Notes Blog

Design should support the site’s purpose - no question. But words lead the pack and Gerry McGovern’s article, Words come before looks in Web design explains. A few Web sites out there are very popular and they don’t even have a graphic on the page. They’re plain and they’re proof that words speak louder than design.

I’m not saying to go out there and just create pages with nothing but p tags and a few h tags. Even these plain Jane sites aren’t that bland. Let’s put it this way: if you’re about ot make a presentation in front of a crowd of 100 or so people, what do you do if the computer housing your presentation stops working? All right, so you have another computer… what if NOTHING gets your presentation back up on the screen?

Strong speakers don’t fret. They know the PowerPoint is not their presentation. It’s an accessory to the presentation. Design should work similarly for Web sites. Have you ever seen those lifeless Web sites where it looks like one giant sales pitch to buy into a program and get rich fast? They are successful, believe it or not, because of the words.

So check those words and see how they do without any images or layout to support them.

Originally posted on InformIT