Web surfers see only what they want

April 10, 2006

in Web/Tech

Certainly no surprise to anyone that designs or (in my case) maintains websites. A few specifics from recent study by Jakob Nielsen’s Nielsen Norman Group:

  • Individuals read Web pages in an “F” pattern. They’re more inclined to read longer sentences at the top of a page and less and less as they scroll down. That makes the first two words of a sentence very important.
  • Surfers connect well with images of people looking directly at them. It helps if the person in the photo is attractive, but not too good-looking. Photos of people who are clearly professional models are a turnoff.
  • People respond to pictures that provide useful information, not just decoration.

And my favorite: When there is less on a page, users read more. They point to JetBlue Airways as an example of one of the sites to get it right.

Related posts:

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  3. A million photographs
  4. Yahoo and Reuters want your pix and video
  5. Masthead image: Delta Fair Midway

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