POP - Making Important Items Pop

Sometimes in the design world, we get caught up in making everything on the website cool. Making things stand out, POP off the page. What happens if you are not careful is if you put alot of POP on your website, then nothing POPs at all.

Sometimes we make our ecommerce sites (the look and feel) the most beautiful thing about the page. Headers that rock and left navigation that's smooth and flashy. My thought is that if you get too much flash (not Adobe flash) but loud popping site designs, your actual content is washed out.

There was recently a study done on eye patterns when looking at web pages, F-Shaped Patter For Reading Web Content. A very interesting article (a good quick read). Noting that people tend to read from left to right and in a sort of F pattern. This would make sense, they scan the page across and down then across again. This can be very important information to know as you start to develop your site. Where to place your content or your "important" information.

Here's the reason for this blog entry and how the two work together. Our mind is drawn by location (position on the page), colors (bright against dull) and movement(animated graphics). If your overall site design (your layout) is simple, something like grays, reds, blacks for instance. Using crisp graphics and clean lines on the overall layout. You will have a very subtle, not overbearing loud website design. With this type of subtle design, your important information like specials, product images/titles or add to cart buttons will stand out, they will POP.

Now take for instance the F-Shaped Pattern I noted above. It looks like peoples eyes are only scanning the information and only hitting on certain points, and in some cases those points are something that POPPED. If the header graphic doesn't immediately grab us, but the product image does, or the FREE Shipping text POPs then you have a successful page. You are getting your message out and hopefully that message will grab them in a way that keeps them reading. If you have a busy header and left navigation with all kinds of icons, graphics and cool things to distract the customer, they may get overwhelmed or overstimulated and miss what you feel is important to them.

All in all keep your site layout simple, clean and subtle and don't get caught up with all the little POP things your site. POP something out when necessary, but don't overuse or it will be less affective. You will find that the items you REALLY WANT TO POP will stand out. Your page will then be successfully delievered as you intended.

** Note: I am not saying you shouldn't use bright colors or exciting layouts. I am saying that you need to consider your design and your data and how the two can work together to get your message out which in turn gets you more sales and add to cart clicks.