Making a website is easy. Making a good website is not so easy. There are many elements that you have to consider if you want to make a good and successful website. What are these elements? This article will cover those things that make a website stand out from the pack.

What is a website?

A website is an address (location/server) on the World Wide Web that contains your web pages. Basically, a website is your personal online communications connection to the rest of the world. So if you want to build a serious website it is important that you know how to properly design your website. There are many websites, so what will make your website standout from the pack?

Media types

A website is totally different from any other type of publishing, advertising or communications media. When you create a brochure, magazine or book for publication, you determine content, print it and it is finished.

If you are advertising a product or service on radio or television, you emphasize the name, how to get the product and do it within 15 to 30 seconds...then run the ad over and over again.

None of the above will work on the Internet and you must take this into account when you design a website.

Fundamentals of an outstanding website

Information - If someone would asked you what is the single most important thing on a website, I hope that you would say that it is information. The internet's primary function is to provide information. That's what the world wide web is all about.

Relevance - Designing for the web requires the relevant content of a newspaper, brochure or magazine aimed at your visitors intrests. Plus it should offer a valuable product and/or information, be updated frequently and stay current with changing technology and visitor opinions.

Design - There are few hard and fast rules in the design of a website. What appeals to one person may not appeal to another. The primary rule of good website design is that it is better to keep it simple, clear and organized. Present the contents in an unpretentious manner, keep it uncomplicated and be consistent.

When you design your website you have to put yourself in your visitors shoes. This website you worked so hard to create will fail if you don't consider the people who will be using it.

Gene DeFazzio is the author and webmaster of the Rocketface(R) Workshop. http://www.rocketface.com/