Effective Use of Color in Web Design
Once you have registered your domain and set up your site with a web hosting company, you are going to want to take a little time to decide how you want your web design to look. There are several important design principles that must be remembered if you want to create a site that is memorable, easy to read, and easy to navigate. Here are some tips on how you can make the most out of your website hosting package by utilizing the best design principles.
Whenever you begin web design, you want to start with the kinds of colors that you will use. While you may have a particular favorite color, it is important to remember that not everyone will feel the same way. Many people make the mistake of using garish colors on their web site, thinking that it will attract more viewers. In fact, it does the opposite and drives people away.
For a professional web design, you should pick no more than five colors that will be utilized in the site. These colors should complement one another and should not clash. If you have a business web hosting plan, you should also consider colors that reflect your company and present a professional appearance. Whenever a company decides to tackle their own web design, they can use their logo as a starting point. The colors of their logo can be the starting point for picking the colors that will be used on the site.
Let’s start with the background. It is generally not recommended that anyone use black for their site’s background. This is a color that is very hard to read off of, and if you have a large amount of text, it will be difficult for your visitors to get an idea of what you have to offer. The exception would be sites that have more graphics than text, but if you do decide to incorporate a black background into your web design, it is important to use a text color that really stands out. Stay away from greens, reds and yellows and go with white text in this situation.
Even though you can’t use the color black for your background, you will still have plenty of options for your web design. You can use a nice white background that always looks professional or tone it down a bit with a cream or light color. Just keep in mind that the web design should be friendly to the eye, not offensive. If you go with a white background, choose other colors such as black, red, or blue for your graphics. These will stand out nicely and provide enough contrast to be easily seen and read.
If you got with a cream background, stick with neutral colors for the rest of your web design so that everything coordinates well. You can use greens, navy blue or earth tones for the text and graphics in your web design. Always remember to pick colors that are complementary to one another to avoid clashing. Your hosting company may provide you with a design program that will take care of these selections for you, and if they do, definitely make use of it.
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