What is a website header?
You should know that there is only one shot to make the initial impact. In the digital designing field, this truth is backed up by high race and a wide variety of available solutions. Moreover, it is quite obvious that when creating the first impact some parts of the web page are more important than the rest, for instance, the good website header design can attract more clients than other parts of the website.
In a classic manner, the professional website header is located at the very top. That is a location where anybody sees first when they run into your project. Representing in some way an invitation, it contains the basic info about the product and the niche via which the site is connected — the important thing is that users manage to understand in a short time what they are talking about.
The professional website header design has a wide area for creative solutions, but at the same time, WHD (website header design) has to be appealing, short, clear and useful. Here are the key elements of navigation placed.
What is the importance of header to your business?
Let’s start with the reason why all commercial sites are created. Business needs attention, customer retaining, high conversion and sales.
Web designers call a number of reasons why a good website header design is a crucial component of commercial sites. This is because at the initial visual contact of the human eye with the page makes a characteristic zigzag. The first impressions our brain forms according to elements 1 and 2 – at the top of the screen.
Read more: Web portal development
When the visitor first landed on the homepage of the company, he quickly scans the header – scans it hoping of catching a glance at an interesting object. Finest header design website must provide such an object. Therefore the development of a header still remains the preeminent crucial subject of studies for usability specialists, content writers, & online marketers.
What is included in the best website header design?
This block can include various objects:
- Brand special features: logo, name, brand sign, slogan, talisman, a photo of the business or manager, and so on;
- information about the product or service being presented;
- hyperlinks to important content elements (menus and navigation);
- hyperlinks to social networking profiles;
- contacts (phone no, email, etc.);
- language switching in the multilingual interface;
- search block;
- subscription field;
- product links: a download demo version, address in App store, etc.
It is not necessary to use each item. Make sure that the site is not crowded with extra info, which prevents guests from focusing on the main aspects.
Good website header design formats?
This can be explained by a number of reasons. First, while visiting a web resource (especially for the initial visit), most would not scrutinize the entire page thoroughly and meticulously, and rapidly run through its content, looking for something, that will attract attention and persuade visitors to stay. Various experiments have revealed the typical models of how the eyes of users move.
There are three main variants mentioned:
- Guttenberg model;
- Z-shaped;
- F-shaped.
The first scheme is typical for pages with a unified representation of info and a weak visual hierarchy. There are 4 active zones in it, two of which are the areas of the site header. Development creative website header design is going to win users’ recognition.
Read more: Website prototype
The second eye movement pattern is Z-shaped and is casual for pages with clear visually determined content blocks. Here, the reader’s eyes go from the top left corner to the right, looking at the corporate website header design first.
Quite usually, people exhibit the next approach:
- At first, the view moves horizontally, usually falls on the upper part – the first line of the F-shaped model.
- Then the visitor’s view drops below, and the page is «scanned» horizontally, but covers a shorter area than in the initial movement. This is an additional component of the F-scheme.
- Finally, the view moves to the left side of the screen, which is viewed vertically. Occasionally this process is rather slow and systematic, which looks like a solid line on the map of the eye movement. In other cases, the look moves faster. This is the last component that creates the pattern, which resembles the letter F.
Designing a header for my website
Readability and visual hierarchy
This point plays an important role, so you need a professional concept to choosing the font of the header and the background color. The user should notice and comprehend all information as quickly and effortlessly as possible.
You should remember, that in the process of moving a user’s glance through the page, the professional website header design can be different itself:
- some developers use a «sticky» (fixed) block, always visible and active;
- others simply hide it;
- there is an option when the good header design in the website does not disappear completely, but in somehow it is compressed when scrolling the page, giving up only the basic essential information.
Hamburger menu
A popular design solution that hides basic links to sections under the appropriate button. This button today is often a full feature in the professional header design for your website, and many users are already aware that the main menu is hidden under it. This approach frees up space, making the layout simple and light, and also saves more space for other objects. In addition, it allows you to create a harmonious interface for various types of devices.
Read more: UX design and audit
And while this solution still raises intense disagreement among developers, it is still used as the site’s header navigation. His opponents point out that this block can confuse the inexperienced Internet users of newcomers.
The fixed (sticky) header of the site
This a popular current approach to improving convenience and for projects with a large amount of content on web pages. It offers access to navigation anywhere on the screen.
Double menu
Navigation in a modern website header design can consist of two different menus. In modern WordPress templates, this is a standard solution.
«Sticky» header consisting of two «lines»:
- In the top part, there are links to social networks, search button, shopping cart, and menu button; in the center, there is a logo.
- The 2nd line focuses on the main sections of the project: a catalog of products, the location of sales points, news and offers, services and contacts.
Professional website header design hierarchy makes all elements clear and easy to read, ensuring reliable interaction with the user.
Services of creating header design at KATASIS
- The header for personal individual branding. If you represent a private firm, named you and yourself, you are a good specialist or, moreover, a star – visitors should see it at a first glance. You are a brand, so the header is dedicated to you. The fastest way to achieve a sense, that you belong, further relationship and recognition development is to place a happy, smiling photo of you in the design header of the website. Even if the visitor has never met you, the repeated look on your face over time will make you feel like you are good friends with anyone.
- The header for business branding. If this is another corporate website, then you need to understand: the logo and the name of the company in the header do not «break down the whole Internet», as it is the best way to express it. In many cases, the best strategy is to minimize the header to raise the content area above. When developing a webpage for business branding, we keep simple and informative. We only include your logo and tagline, not cluttering up space with unnecessary, pathetic things.
- The header for the branding of products and services. For branding products, events, programs, and services think of the logo that represents the key offer without extra words. A brief statement about the benefits helps visitors to instantly figure out whether they are placed right. When working on a modern website header design for tickets for an event (concert, party) we try to emotionally convey its atmosphere: we include photos, product logos and a brief description.
