While many people are intimidated by the thought of creating their own website, it’s not that difficult with the proper knowledge. There are many programs for software that make web page design easy. Keep reading for some awesome tips on making your site work.

Always delete any outdated content that is on your website. If there is content on your page highlighting an event that is already part of past history, your readers are going to abandon you quickly. Users want to spend their time on sites that are cared for, and leaving up old information shows a lack of attention to the site. Create a schedule that will help you manage information and specials, and remind you to take down useless items.

Choose a good background. Animated GIF backgrounds and complicated patterns on your website can be very distracting to viewers trying to absorb your content. Choose a background which coordinates well with the message that you are trying to impart, it must blend in well with the balance of your website design.

Always be aware of the size of your webpages and keep them as small as possible. Not all Internet users have fast connection speeds, and the longer your site takes to load, the less interest they will have. You don’t want people to have to abandon your site because the pages won’t load.

Keyword research is important. Your customers should always be the top focus, but search engine optimization is still necessary to bring those customers to your pages. Proper keywords will make visitors want to stay longer.

File Sizes

No matter what your website looks like, all the file sizes should be small. The reason for this is that your file sizes directly affect how quickly your website loads. It is critical that your website load quickly for everyone. The other factor to bear in mind is not all visitors access through high-speed connections. Test your site to make sure that it loads up quickly, even when accessed on a dial up connection.

Before publishing websites, check them for broken links. An error page after clicking a link is very frustrating for visitors to your page. You could check for broken links yourself, or get a program that scans and reports broken links for you.

Do not have pop-up windows on your site. The average user finds pop-up windows to be an annoying distraction, rather than something useful. Many visitors to your site may simply exit the site when faced with a pop-up. If this happens, they are unlikely to return.

Make sure your navigation is simple to use. The length your visitors stay will depend on how you set out your navigation links. The navigational tree should be neat, easily accessible and consistent so your visitors have a good web experience.

Try writing a good “About Us” page. So many sites have dull, boring information on these pages. Get your visitors engaged! Give people an introduction to your own background, how you became interested in website creation, your inspirations, and what your business goals are.

Make sure that you prune content that is no longer relevant. For example, if your web page is promoting some event that occurred a year ago, you’ve probably lost a lot of your readers. Readers want current information and want to feel safe in dealing with a company that is on top of things. Make sure you regularly schedule time to add new content, and to remove old.

One of the biggest mistakes people make is not reserving domain names immediately when they are considering owning several sites. Come up with something inventive, something that people will remember. However, reserve it right away, because these names go fast. Other people may be thinking about the same thing you are thinking. Many creative people think alike.

Build a microsite at first, as this will help you get an overall impression of your current strengths and weaknesses as a web designer. Begin with a few basic pages, (just text for the most part) and see how it goes.

As previously mentioned, it is easy to create websites these days due to the large number of software programs currently available. By reading a few instructions provided by the chosen software program, your new career as a designer of websites will be firmly within your grasp. Use these tips to determine exactly what you want from the program that you choose.

Pop-ups should be given a wide swerve. There is little worse than visiting a site and being attacked by pop-up ads or newsletter sign-up boxes. Many people will close a website that brings pop-ups as soon as they can, no matter what size the site is. Just avoid these irritating ads, so your users will be happy. If your host forces pop-ups on you, it may be time to find a new one.