What’s wrong with my dancing mailbox graphic?

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again?

Part of the series Tips for Wannabe Pro Web Designers

Over time, most web visitors quickly lose fascination with, ummmmm, let’s say the less subtle design elements, particularly flashy stuff like email link animations, spinning letters, and huge hit counters. Few faux pas will draw attention to your Rookie Ranking quicker than in-your-face animations.

The simple truth: Most folks get a near-terminal case of “Look-what-I-can-do-itis” on their first few sites. While there is nothing wrong with putting whatever you like on a personal page, your professional work should be…well, professional.

Professional sites are about what the visitors want and need, not what the designer thinks is cool. Just because you can doesn’t mean you should! You might want to take a look at the Web Pages That Suck site to see if you’re guilty of some of the more egregious errors. While you shouldn’t take the recommendations there (or anywhere) as gospel, you can learn how some of your design elements may be perceived by visitors.

In fact, I consistently got the most visitor compliments on a site I designed early in my professional work.Far from the most attractive site I’ve designed, it wasn’t particularly interactive or flashy. However, it was lightning fast to load and well-organized, with lots of useful content. People appreciate your paying attention to their needs. Keep your focus on the site visitor and you won’t go too far wrong.