Less is More

Sep 4th, 2015 3:40 am

"The more dishes, the lower the standard." - Chef Gordon Ramsay

Sometimes a client will have so many subpages on their website, they feel like they're drowning in them, and they have no idea where to start concerning organization and display of all their links.

Challenges include cutting their options down on what to say and how much of it to say at once, as well as how to lay out and manage their navigation areas.

I always refer to Chef Gordon Ramsay's views on restaurant menus when helping with this problem. Less is more. You don't want to overwhelm the end-user or yourself with too much information.

But maybe you want to hold on to all of that content for records, or SEO reasons, or something like that. That's just fine! Just make sure you're putting forth a pleasant "first impression" for new visitors. The internet has become so much of a reflection of society that you really do need to consider your website comes across as if it were your store-front and you're standing behind the counter (because if you think about it, it is and you are). This is the whole idea behind UX-- level with your audience. Give them an enjoyable experience, don't challenge them, don't waste their time.

So, how do you put your website on par with a classy five-star menu with steak and lobster and a shrimp cocktail, printed on a narrow sheet of the finest parchment, and not like one of those mall Chinese food places with over 200 choices? Keep your first impression simple:

A small selection of useful navigation links that fill your new visitor on who, what, and why.
Call-to-action blocks, a.k.a. quick links that are placed and designed so as to stand out and grab attention. These are the portals to the most frequented and valuable areas on your website-- the main reasons your visitors found their way to you in the first place.
Quick access to contact information. There's a very good chance your visitor googled your website just so they could find your phone number or email. Some people aren't readers- they want to hear it straight from the horse's mouth. So, let them!

This is your primary content and should be displayed as such. If you have a back-stock of deeper, more involved information, allow it to be accessible but out of the way, perhaps in the footer and/or the site-map. Disclaimer! In rare cases, it's a good idea to put a large selection of links up-front, like if you're a department store or some other type of retailer that specializes in variety. Ask us if you have any questions about User Experience in regard to your website content.