How To Plan The Navigation Of A Website

If you do your share of research, you will realize that the flow of a website plays a major role in garnering traffic. The simpler and easier the navigation system, the more visitors you will draw in. In other words, the navigation of your website is one of the most important factors that determine the traffic on your website. Again, when people look for certain material online, they tend to look for related items on the same page. So if you can display all the visitors needs in a concise manner, it is going to improve your websites performance as well.

If you are considering navigation of your website, it is best that you carry it out during the initial planning phase of the website. Once you know the niche your website falls into and the number of pages it will carry, this information will go a long way in planning out the navigation of the pages as well. The ultimate goal of website navigation planning is to give the visitor all the information he/she has logged in for.

Once you have this information in place, only then can you actually start working on the navigation of your website. The following tips should be kept in mind when planning the navigation for your website.

Planning the navigation for your Website

1: Provide a comprehensive sitemap of the website you are presenting. The purpose of this sitemap is to provide links to various pages and sections of the website.

2: The top navigation bar can contain links to the most significant sections of your website. Apart from this, you can also include your contact information and the address for your homepage. If you have a lot of important sections, you can also create an additional top navigation bar.

3: If these sections happen to have subsections, you can also add a drop down menu with the relevant subsections.

4: The categories of the website can be expanded on sidebars. This is the best way to keep your webpage clean and clutter free.

5: If you plan to provide interlinking, make sure it is relevant and contextual. This will help visitors find what they are looking for easily.

6: Every page of your website must have links of other significant parts of the website. This way, you leave the visitor with no chance of missing out on important sections.

7: Your homepage link must be displayed on each and every page of your website. This helps visitors navigate with more ease.

8: Make sure that your website does not act as a final draft. Always leave some room for the addition of newer links and sections.

The main purpose of navigation your website is to provide visitors with a convenient and simple surfing experience. The longer a visitor stays on your website, the better its performance. This also boosts your ranking on numerous search engine pages. It is for this reason that good navigation is considered to be the building blocks of a successful website. So make sure you have your navigation system streamlined and optimized to draw in maximum traffic.