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How to Organize a Website

by: Gene DeFazzio

Importance of website organization

Next to analysis, organization is one of the key tools in the development of a website. Only if your website is presented to your visitors in a clearly organized way will it produce professional results and make your job as webmaster simpler. And, if you proceed in logical steps while designing your site the job will go much easier and mistakes will be minimized.

The goal is to arrange all of the elements of your website into a whole of interdependent parts. Or, to form all of the text, graphics and thought into a functioning whole. Step back in your mind and get an overview of your website. Visualize it as an experience rather than a collection of text and graphics. This is where the website begins to take on shape and organization.

Main elements of website organization

There are three main elements that make up the organization of a website. Each one depends upon the other. They are:

1 - Structure:

The form of your website and its method of navigation, this is the framework that will support your website. Don't confuse structure with layout. Structure is the behind the scenes mechanics of how your website will work, not how you plan to lay it out.

Select the form or mechanics of your website at the start. Decide if you will use HTML tables, CSS (cascading style sheets), or frames to present your website. This is also a good time to select the method of navigation that you will use.

Depending upon the content of your website there are many types of website navigation schemes that you can employ. Search the Web and see what other webmasters are doing. Ideas are born out of other ideas. Don't be afraid to study the methods of navigation used by other webmasters. This is how we learn.

2 - Content:

Content is the body and substance of your website. What do you want to sell, say or present? That is the focus of your website's content. What you have to say and the way that you say it is what your visitors see when they visit your site so be sure to spend plenty of time on this element of your design.

The heart and soul of your website is it's content. Take your time and develop your content much like you would write an essay or a letter to someone that you hold in high regard. Be clear, concise and never wander from the main topic unless it is necessary to clarify a point. Focus on what you are trying to say and how you are going to say it.

Proof read your copy, over and over, until it becomes a part of you. Have others read your content and listen to their opinion. Think of the audience that you are trying to reach and the response that you are trying to invoke. Keep your subject and call to action foremost in your mind as you proceed with your content.

3 - Layout:

The theme or method of laying out your website for your visitors is much like finding the right frame for a picture. Be sure that your website layout complements what you are trying to say. Always strive to keep your webpage layouts as simple as possible while preserving the central theme of your website.

Every page of your website should carry its own message but mesh with all of the other pages both in layout and color scheme. This insures continuity throughout your site and provides your visitors with the visual clues they need to navigate easily from subject to subject and page to page.

Most of the mega sites (i.e. google, yahoo, etc.) have very simple page layouts. Navigation is placed in the same position on each page as well as the main body text and ad units. The idea is to make the information they are presenting obvious to anyone who visits their website. Remember, this is not rocket science its simply a matter of organization.