Your site should be more visual
One of the comments I often hear from all kinds of people is: “Your site should be more visual”. Apart from the obvious response that it is entirely visual because you use your eyes to see it not your fingers to feel it or your nose to smell it, people are saying that you need more graphic elements (usually bigger pictures and more of them).
Whilst it is true that pictures are an important part of a website it is too easy to get carried away.
If you use the Internet often you will soon see that many web designers are starting to use large images on the front page of a website. The idea is that people will find the images attractive and be drawn into the website. I’m sure that this is true to an extent. The images are great but you will need some words so that the images make sense. Unless you are an artist you will probably struggle with seeing the message of an image in the kind of time you are giving to look at a website.
The point is this:
It’s not the image, its the message that draws people in
We all like pretty images and often they do catch our attention but on a website you want more than catching attention. People come to websites to find information, not to be entertained (unless you are a video or music site of course). Big images on front pages only work when they also help people answer questions.
I’m also often surprised by the length of time some systems for displaying images take to load. Given that most people come to a site and decide within one second if they want to explore the site if your image system takes longer than half a second to load then you will lose all but the most persistent.
Also I’ve come across many sites that use rotating image systems (images load one after the other). This is great if people are wanting to see your big images but most people are looking for answers which means they will not bother to wait for your banners to rotate.
If you do use images as links etc on your site then make sure you have the same links in text form for those who either can’t be bothered to wait or who have images or plugins turned off.
I’ve also found that many of the requests for more visual stuff often come from designers who mainly work outside the web or marketing people. It is always wise to listen to such people but always remember that the site works best when it is delivering its content easily and not as entertainment.
Also the impact of these images is diminishing as more and more sites have them. When just a few sites had large images on the front page it was kind of exciting but now its common place it’s ability to draw people in is diminished.
I’ve worked in architecture and graphic design so I know that design of a site can help people navigate and enjoy a site (design is not all about text) but I also know that some people are just not practical in their approach to these things. I once knew an architect who thought signs in a building were not needed because a good design should guide people to where they need to go. This was fine but when you are a stranger to a large building looking for a toilet (or any other room for that matter) this approach can be very frustrating.
By all means use a more visual approach but don’t let it get in the way of practical matters.
