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Design

Design Help?

I recently finished the web design track and have been trying to apply what I learned to a website I created a few years ago. It's a lot better, but I'm still not completely satisfied with the look. Does anyone have any suggestions to make it look better? Thanks in advance!

The site is live at http://aspiringwriters.org

Alexander Ferguson
Alexander Ferguson
1,512 Points

Hi Karen. My recommendation for improving your website would be to try and go for a more modern/flat look. I like what you did with the hero page big text and a call to action. If you want inspiration for websites I always use http://land-book.com/ Also creating style guides for consistency will help you improve you website and make it more uniform. Here is my own personal website. http://alexjferguson17.github.io/Alex-UX-Portfolio/ I hope some of these tips will help you.

Thanks Alexander! I was thinking "more modern" as well, but not sure what exactly would give it that vibe. You have a great looking portfolio... very much the look I'm after. I'm still struggling to figure out the small details of what makes the difference. You mentioned the "flat" style - I'll look into that.

I'm open to more specific suggestions as well. I was thinking of a photo background for the top of the page for example. I have not found a good photo for that yet though.

Alexander Ferguson
Alexander Ferguson
1,512 Points

For your background photo I use https://unsplash.com/. Free photos for commercial use and they are really high resolution.

1 Answer

Rondie Li
Rondie Li
11,415 Points

Hi Karen. Here's a few suggestions I would like to give regarding to the design. :)

  • The hero page is nice and simple, but it seems a bit boring when it comes to the entire page with the same background. It would be nicer if there's a bit more contrast between the two sections.
  • The design of the "Get Story Idea" could be more cohesive with the aesthetic of your logo/website. Perhaps a dark teal button with white text, flat no border/shadow would be nicer and more 2016? Also you can use a stronger font there.
  • Setting: try either adjust the width, or resizing the map. It might be just me but the square map + wide copy combination look kind of weird to me.
  • Characters: it would be nicer to align the names with the intro paragraph.

Also technical wise:

hope it helps, and good luck

Great suggestions, Thanks Rondie.