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The laws of the Internet (marketing-wise) are different from any other medium. Probably the most important thing to note about the Internet when it comes to marketing is that it is user-interactive.

In other mediums (newspaper, magazine, radio, TV, etc.) people have to read, listen, and wait for all the necessary information they are looking for come to them. On the Internet, however, this information is widely available and can be found by simply scanning and clicking. A wise marketer would take this information and use it to their advantage and apply it to their website.

Some websites create more sales than others simply because its design is designed around the human psyche. Simply having a website and throwing a bunch of content or products on there is no where near as effective as a well formulated (i.e. intentionally placing this and that there) and planned out website.

Once you know certain human behaviors you can design your product (or website) around them.

Let’s take a look at some typical human behaviors on the Internet.

Typical Human Behaviors Online - western part of the world
  1. Read left to right.
  2. Bright - yelling at you colors are not good for backgrounds or in large areas.
  3. Short attention spans (especially online).
  4. Scan web pages and don’t read every word.
  5. Want information instantly without working too hard to find it.
  6. People’s eyes get tired if they read a computer screen too long.
  7. Read bold print (got me through college) / headings (size matters).
  8. Scan links, buttons, and menus.
  9. Don’t like flashing images.
  10. Don’t like to feel as if they are being hit hard with advertisements (which is why the Web Hosting page of eVentureBiz looks different than most other hosting companies).
  11. Prefer a font size they can read and are use to on the Internet.
  12. Prefer bulleted lists for quick information gathering.
  13. Will typically read short blocks of text (i.e. short paragraphs) more than they will read a large block (empty space on a website is ok).
  14. The upper and left portions of a website typically get viewed.
  15. Strange fonts are ignored.
  16. Websites with a lot of free information and content keeps visitors on your site longer and the longer they are on your site the more likely they will remember it and buy.
  17. Calls to action (telling your visitor what to do) work better and get more clicks than telling them what they can do.
  18. People buy from places they trust. Give them a reason to trust you. Give them free information or something else that might help them to trust you.
  19. Many people read the links at the bottom of the page.
  20. Roman numerals are good for numbered lists (I’m bad about that one).
  21. Advertising banners typically are skipped and not seen.
  22. Other than blogs, website visitors like navigation links near the top of the page (most) and also the left.
  23. For blogs, content is the most important thing to readers, therefore, blog readers prefer content on the left and navigational menus work better horizontal and/or on the right.
  24. People scan websites in a F pattern.

I’m sure there’s more and I’m sure you can search the Web for an actual study taken. My knowledge comes from a) college, b) years of working with people and designing websites, c) reading case studies myself, and d) examining MY online behavior.

That last point I made, letter d), is something you should do yourself.

Over the next few days while you’re online, note to yourself where your eyes are drawn to on websites and examine your click-through behavior. Chances are you’re not the only one like that. Then go back to your website and see how people must be viewing your website.

Do you give them what they need in the key areas they scan? Do you tell them what to do and not just ask?

If you think about it, website designs are typical, just like a car is typical (that is, people are use to the pedals put in the same place, the steering wheel positioned to one side, etc.).

Over the years, websites have been designed much the same and therefore people are trained to view websites in a particular way. So give them what they want.

I also have posted more design tips you might want to consider in our forums. Here are two you might be interested in if you liked this post:

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