Conventions Of A Website

Danielle Watkins

Logo Placement

Logos are typically placed in the upper left of the page, but some TV websites subvert the stereotype such as ITV who have placed their logo in the centre of the page. This in turn makes the ITV logo and website more recognisable and unique, whereas the BBC and Channel 5 follow the typical placement.

When there are multiple windows open on a computer, the consistent left placement of the logo allows them to be aware they are still viewing their website.

Main NavigationThe main navigation appears at the top of the website, and this is the most recognised placement for the navigation bar. ITV again subverts this convention by placing their navigation bar underneath the two large images showing this week’s most talked about episodes.

Changing where the navigation bar is can confuse viewers and cause them to leave the website, as people do not want to be searching all through the website to find what they want. Having the navigation bar at the top of the page creates consistency and allows for the users to navigate easily.

Link Styling

Clicking links has become second nature for web users, as they want to know what is clickable and what isn’t. When this is broken it becomes confusing for the users and can cause them to visit an alternate website. A classic link is defined by being underlined text or text in a different colour. You should avoid underlining words which are not links, and avoid using different coloured texts for non-links.

Button Functionality A button is a feature which is often used on websites as it is extremely intuitive. This highlights that they should be clicked, but you should ensure that all buttons link to something. A button that doesn’t link to another web page or area of your website will be confusing to users. The button functionality is different on each website however they are still fairly similar. For example, on Channel 4 the links get bigger, however, on Channel 5 the links underline.