Governing Good Web Site Design

Four guidelines that score highest in both relevance and supporting evidence include:
* Use an Iterative Design Approach
Designs should be tested with site visitors before they are implemented. Use paper prototypes to test the design and make revisions to the design based on your findings.

* Provide Useful Content
While it seems common sense. It's not uncommon for sites to contain a company's sales pitch instead of the information that site visitors are looking for. Studies have reported that content is more important than navigation, visual design, functionality, and interactivity.

* Ensure Visual Consistency
Design creativity must be balanced with consistency. Studies show that tasks performed on more consistent interfaces resulted in: reduced task completion times; fewer errors; higher user satisfaction; and a shorter learning time.

* Use Black Text on Plain, High-Contrast Backgrounds
Use white text on dark backgrounds sparingly. People read black text on a white background up to 32 percent faster.

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