Have you ever been to a website that had at least 5 different fonts or a back ground color that made the font extremely difficult to read? (i.e. white back ground with yellow font) This kind of website is a disaster--the type of website that will immediately send a message to your customers that says, "Our company/organization is not professional enough to have a decent website". The underlying message is, "Our company does not care that much about your business".

This is the last message you want to send as a business owner, so look over these tips to make sure you are incorporating the basics of professional design.

1. Create a professional feel for your advertisement/website.

What does this mean? It means having one consistent font that is easy to read. It means labeling your links clearly so that others can easily navigate your site. It means having a consistent theme to all of your pages so that your ad/site has a unique style and feel--one that is not cluttered by unreadable fonts!

It means balancing images, text, and empty space; too many pictures or too much text makes your ad/website look a lot less appealing; remember that it is GOOD to have some empty or white space.

Don't forget the basics: grammar, punctuation, and spelling--nothing will make you look more unprofessional faster than poor written communication! Get your work proof read by a professional.

2. Organize your information concisely.

Most people searching the internet want to find what they need quickly; they don't want to spend hours and hours reading through long paragraphs on your website to find what they are looking for. Use bullet points or break up your information into small paragraphs. Use bold text to emphasize the really important ideas or products. If someone only spent a few minutes on your website, they should be able to read the bold text and have a basic idea of what it's about.

Have others look at your website/advertisement and ask what their first impression is without reading any of it; you may be surprised to find that people are overwhelmed by too many words and not enough white space. Stick to the basics and present your information in a way that anyone could easily understand. This leads to the next tip:

3. Communicate your information at the 5th grade level.

Yes, it's true. Even on the internet we still need to keep things as simple as possible. Avoid big words or fancy language--even if your ad/website is catered to an educated audience. Most people just want the basics about your business or product--if they want more information, have them contact you via email or phone.

4. Use a Professional Color Scheme.

Dark backgrounds with light text tend to look the most professional. If you have to use a white background, use a dark font that is easy to read like Navy or Black. Red may not be dark enough unless it is a darker shade. If you are trying to incorporate a color theme to your advertisement/website, try using as few colors as possible (i.e. 2-3). If you design a business logo yourself, incorporate the above tips. If your logo is on a business card make sure that your name and contact information are the biggest and boldest thing on the card.

5. Always ask others to give you feedback about the usability of your website.

Find out how to create a survey that you can post on your site to gather this information. Yahoo sitebuilder makes it very easy to incorporate forms and gather information. You may want to consider switching to this program if your sitebuilding software is not user friendly.

Above all, remember this: Your advertisement/website sends a direct message to your customers about how professional you are, so spend the time to make your work the best it can be.