Are you placing enough emphasis on the importance of images in web design?

In the ongoing debate of content vs. image with regards to web design, one thing has become apparent; a website is most successful when the two elements complement each other. Yes, even on a website, a picture truly is worth a thousand words. An image may be the easiest, and the most appealing, way to send a message. Images are an integral part of web design, they hold the power to enhance the overall look and feel of a website and capture the attention of incoming traffic.

The “content is king” way of thinking, may hurt some websites. Images are an important part of web design, and their significance should be evenly considered with that of the content. While content gives necessary information and is constructed with the needs and desires of visitors in mind,  images are used to aid the information visually to the web users. When appropriate images and content work together your website is both informative and memorable to visitors. Unnecessary usage of images and inadequate content will result in a weak website.

Why incorporate images on your website?
• Influences the buying habit of the customers
• Images demonstrates the products and services effectively
• Images work to create a memorable impression

Images have a mesmerizing influence on the human mind. There has been a lot of experimentation with images on the Internet to give a more interactive, appealing look and thereby enhance effective communication. No matter how well-constructed and informative website content may be, it will never have the ability that images have to bring a visitor into a magical fold at the first glance.

Are web development and design companies using social media networks to improve traffic?

If  the answer is no, they are missing out on one of the most efficient, and not to mention one of the least expensive, ways to drive traffic to your website. Ranking opportunities, increase in brand recognition, both locally and globally, and engaging your target audience are just a few benefits of incorporating social networking links into an overall web development and design plan.

An excellent way to incorporate the presence of social networks into your website design strategy is to include social bookmarking tools on your site. This tool will give your reader the option to comment on your content, give feedback and to share your information with others. This is easily accomplished by placing social bookmarking tools at the end of each post. Many sites offer “share this” options which make it easy for readers to submit the page being viewed to popular social news web sites and communities such as Digg, Delicious, StumbleUpon, Facebook, Twitter and email. This process of sharing valuable content online can be compared to word of mouth marketing, with the exception being when the information is online, the “buzz” instantly becomes a searchable asset.

To be a successful player in the increasingly popular social media game, a company must be in the business of consistent and relevant content publishing. Search engines and social network users respond positively to sites that are frequently updated. People who use social bookmarking sites want to know that you care enough about your content to submit it manually and to tell them why they might be interested in it. Every time you rate another site or communicate with another user, you are building up your credibility. Get on the good side of these people and you can use social bookmarking sites to greatly increase the traffic to your site!

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