Steps To Have The Best Website Navigation
As Steve Jobs said, “Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.”
The design of a best website’s navigation has a profound effect on how users navigate the site and how long they stay there. The better the navigation, the easier it is for users to find what they are looking for and the more likely they are to return to the site.
For a user to navigate the site, it should be easy for them to find what they are looking for. There are various navigation patterns that can be used to make the best website navigation easy. But before selecting any of them, you need to decide on the final objective of your website and things like target audience, colors and brand guidelines will be taken into consideration.
Creative Navigation: Used when there are many items on the website and a user will have trouble finding what they’re looking for without taking time. It should also be used when you want your visitors to explore different products or services but still find their way back home quickly.
Frequent visitor Navigation Pattern: This type of pattern is best suited for a user who frequently visits your website and needs quick access to their favorite pages.
The following are some of the steps which will help you in having an effective website navigation:
Step-1: Find out what your customer really wants
Step-2: Focus on those navigational elements which need to be highlighted
Step-3: Focus on clarity, not complexity
Step 4: Test your menu labels with customers before launching them on your website
Step 5: Try different layouts of your navigation system such as vertical menus or horizontal naviation toolbars,
Step 6: Keep it short and simple – less than 10 items per menu.