Solid tricks to keep traffic booming from a freelance web designer. Every bloggers goal is to be heard. Some may want a small crowd of close friends and family, some may want half a million people a month to read what they have to say. Whichever blogger you are these tips will keep the web traffic fierce and readers begging for more.
When you first visit a blog, you usually see a banner, photo, logo, or name. Make sure that when your guests visit your site they are immediately hooked. Use a photo you took or a graphic you designed.
Many times the photo or graphic doesn't even have to do with what your blog is about. You could have a blog written about your new puppy and your love for animals but a picture of a green pasture or the ocean. Make it visually pleasing. You just want to make sure that your visitors are immediately hooked, and the image on top is what will keep them interested enough to not click away to the next blog.
Web browsers usually spend under a second before they decide to either stay on the page, or leave. Use a color scheme that relates to your content. If your writing dark poetry and prose, don't use light greens and yellows, but deep magentas and dark blues. This leaves a good sense of visual dynamic in the mind of the viewer as they navigate through your blog.
When choosing colors for your web page, pick complimentary colors and complimentary hues. Below is a color wheel demonstrating complimentary colors. Colors directly opposite are complimentary, and look good together.
After choosing a color theme, keep it simple. Don't use more than three colors or your viewers start to get confused and will leave. Remember, you've seen the site hundreds of times, but this is their first visit.
When it comes to the aesthetics of your blog, make sure and always keep it pleasing. Don't have flashing banners or scrolling text, these make the viewer uneasy and they tend to click away. Avoid hard edges, keep corners rounded and use fades to lead in and out of your images and to match your sites background.
Having a solid photo atop your page with a smooth gradient fade into your background will lead your viewers eye from the top banner down into your content. Always be aware of your focal point and secondary focal points. Human brains are attracted to lighter colors, especially reds and oranges. Use this knowledge to guide your viewer through the website.
Have a strong set of colors where you want your viewer to look first, then lead them away with similar hues of varying brightness, so they naturally want to stay on your page longer and keep reading.
Think of your blog or web page as a piece of art. Step back and look at it as a whole and consider what will pop out and what won't, and use this knowledge to reshape your blog and guide your viewers attention.
Summary:
- Use a strong photograph or graphic to immediately hook your viewers.
- Keep it visually pleasing.
- Use complimentary colors.
- Pick a theme.
- Guide your viewers attention through your page to keep them reading.
Make sure and view the other parts of this article on blog navigation, content and advertising to continue to drive traffic. Happy Blogging!
