10 required webpage navigation menu design principles and navigation menu design principles

10 required webpage navigation menu design principles and navigation menu design principles

The navigation menu of a website is the most important instruction for users to learn more about other parts of the website after reading the webpage, and is vital for retaining users. There are many ways to design navigation menus. Each website must have its own navigation menu. To design an outstanding navigation menu, designers must break through the traditional restrictions to demonstrate their creativity. Navigation is one of the main factors determining the availability of the website. If visitors can easily find the content they want, they will be more likely to stay on your website, instead of closing the webpage and leaving. Effective navigation can help websites increase page views, improve user experience, and even increase sales and profits.

 

Tip: Design common prototyping tools for navigation bar menus: Axure, Mockplus, UXPin, and Sketch

 

Designing an excellent navigation menu is not that difficult, but you still need to grasp the following points:

 

1. Easy to find

 

It is visually easy to distinguish and can be found at a Glance. Do not use the same color, Font, or size as the navigation text. The navigation text should be highlighted and conspicuous. For Menu buttons, use high-contrast color and clear text. The navigation area must be of a certain size, which is easy to find. You must use the usual location for navigation, such as the top and left sides of the page.

 

2. Simple

 

It must be simple and easy to operate to help your users quickly view information available and where to find the content to be searched. Users need to be able to predict how your website works without learning how to do it! If they need to consider how to do it, you have lost them! Avoid allowing users to click a very small inverted triangle and expand the level-2 menu. They may not be able to find it.

 

3. Click

 

Make sure that all the elements in the navigation are clickable. When multiple category directories are used in the navigation, all title elements should be clickable links. Even if you use the drop-down menu, clicking the subcategory link may be a natural trend of visitors. I often find that some websites cannot jump to the navigation bar after clicking.

 

4. Consistency

 

Try to use the same Navigation Mode on all pages. This is very important because there is no consistent design and the user may think that he is on another website. Make sure that you use the same navigation mode so that you can easily access your website without losing it.

 

5. Clear

 

Your menu text must be clearly described. Use simple and clear terms. Do not let users think about what the text here means. Keep your text short, descriptive, and highlighted. If it takes more than five seconds to think about the meaning of the text and then click the link, this will lead to a poor user experience.

 

 

6. Keep it concise

 

You can add more projects in the vertical navigation, but there is no need for too many projects in the main menu, which will distract users. Generally, it is recommended that there be no more than 8 items.

 

7. Interaction

 

Feedback is crucial for any interaction. When people click or hover their mouse over a menu item, make sure to provide instructions for the next operation. Timely feedback on any operations can make users more willing to click on the navigation bar. You can change the text color and background color of the link, or bold it to make it different from other content.

 

8. Sort

 

You need to determine the main functions provided by the website, what is the most important, and put the most important items in the leading navigation according to their importance. Secondary projects can be placed in the secondary navigation.

 

9. Style

 

Minimalism is still a trend in web design. A unique visual style will make your menu look cool, but make sure it matches the overall design of the entire website.

 

 

 

10. Accessibility

 

Website accessibility is always an important criterion for measuring the quality of a website. Please make sure that you are friendly to those with obstacles. If you want to use a large number of cool CSS technologies, please also consider compatibility with screen reading technology.

 

The following is a checklist for navigation design. You can check your navigation menu according to the following table:

 

1. The navigation location is easily located on the page

 

2. You only need to move the mouse over and click to operate the entire navigation menu.

 

3. Each menu item can be clicked and jump normally.

 

4. The navigation text is short and clear

 

5. The entire website uses only one navigation menu

 

6. When you move the cursor over the corresponding menu item, the corresponding item can be highlighted.

 

7. navigation menu items cannot exceed 8

 

8. navigation menu items are sorted by importance

 

9. The navigation style is consistent with the overall website style.

 

10. The navigation menu items can be correctly recognized by the screen reader.

 

We will display 6 different exquisite navigation menus. Their style and design methods are different. I hope you can get some inspiration from them, to design a navigation menu with its own characteristics. TIPS: you can click the navigation menu below to see how they work on a browser.

 

The following prototype tools are used: Axure, Mockplus, UXPin, and Sketch.

 

Words Pictures Ideas

 

 

Dataveyes

 

 

Miss Julia Piep

 

 

SRG

 

 

Editer

 

 

Pervasive Light

For more design-related knowledge (experience tutorials and prototype design examples), all in the following: blog | select the best product design and UX/uidesign Resources