Blog And Image Layouts: Get Them Right for the Right Impression

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Your blog has to counter a heavy competitive stretch even from the first time that you develop your idea for a blog. Therefore, you have to build each step with enough perfection to warrant a click from your visitors. Much before you move on to advanced steps like developing the content or leaning on the appropriate SEO practices, you have to concentrate on building the first predominant step – Blog Layout. Your blog layout will literally work in deciding the number of visitors that stay over to read and those that just skim the posts and move on. When working on your layout design, you have to take in to account the fact that most readers will probably spare just a few seconds making this decision. So get the layout right to make the right impression on your visitors. Let me share the tips I learned while setting the layouts for my discount coupon blog that features Jupiter Images and iStockphotos discount deals. Image Source: Flickr – Backwards Pocket Watch

Lay out the Blog Width

You have multiple options in this fold. You can take your pick from resolutions ranging from 800 X 600, 1024 X 768, 1280 X 1024 and so on. The resolutions determine the width that you are planning to assign your blog. In technical language, any content that lies in the region of the page, without any scrolling in any direction, is said to be above the fold. It is obvious that this is the hotspot and first base of attention catcher for your blog. The impression that you make above the fold will decide whether the visitors will deem your blog interesting enough to scroll through the other content.

Choose with use

Unfortunately, there are no stats available that can help you make the choice theoretically. You have to put your own research through the process to understand what suits your blog best. However, largely the idea depends upon the design of the posts and where you decide to put in the sidebar or the other plug ins. The solution can be loosely based on a 2:1 ratio basis for posts against sidebar size.

The Resolution Adjustment

While it is true that you can size out your blog in the resolution of your choice, you need to take in to account your visitors’ browser choices as well. So, if you are designing with a higher resolution adjust the design to make sure that it is adaptable with lower resolutions too. In nonprofessional terms, you need to make sure that your blog layout, even when set to grandiose, can still be as effective without people having to scroll through to get to any part.

Set the Maxi-Mini Limits

Concept development is more powerful than plain design strategy at any given point of the process. Therefore, when you are battling with your resolution choices and then arranging the layout, you also have the option of going liquid with your design. What this means is your design resolution can be set at a fluidity that is changeable with browser windows. Therefore, people with any set resolution on their browsers can get your blog at their size option. There can be a sight adjustment problem; higher resolution can stretch the sentence size while lower resolution will squash it. Just set in the maxi-mini limits to warrant that this problem will cease to exist.

Points to Consider When Laying Out the Design

These are just some quick tips that will help you keep your layout in perspective and finish the task in the same style in which you start it off. First priority goes to objectifying the title. It should clearly state what your blog is all about and then take care to display it predominantly in the visual positions. Your readers should not be in a single doubt about the point of their staying on with the blog. Add a visual image that the readers can relate with your blog. You can decide upon a dashing logo. However, it is always to your best interests if you add in your image with the logo too. This makes your blog much more humane to your readers, distinguishable from random sites. Snag the right impression right off with your first attraction points. Hit repeatedly with high impact headlines, high potential intro paragraphs and most importantly, keep all these attractions above the fold position. You want the reader snagged and willing to scroll for more. Place the calls to action in the hot positions of the blog page. Your reader should not have to wander all over the site to find out the next interesting action. Your RSS feed buttons, subscriber newsletter, any free benefit that you have on offer and all lucrative links should be on proper display. Attention to details is necessary at this point. Your blog layout will set the stage, so to speak, for the advanced parts of the blogging process to work smoothly.

Jane also writes about discount deals in the internet as that of jupiter images coupon, istockphoto promotional codes. She is part of the team that actively promotes Jupiter Images and iStockphotos.com discount coupon codes.