Navigation Location Fundamentals Question
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- Martin Simpson
- Hero Rocketeer
- Posts: 276
- Thanks: 0
- President Blue-Eyed Panda LLC
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I was asked by a client why so many of my sites have top menu navigation IN addition to left/right menu navigation. The client was bothered by the seeming redundancy of this.
My honest response was pretty simple -- "Because Rockettheme.com templates do it that way..."
hahah ---
I wanted to know your thoughts from a design stand-point though?
My thought was sort of like a school teacher trying to hit on all learning styles -- writing, reading, listening, doing etc...
Some visitors want top nav and some want left/right nav --- also the right nav stays expanded and the top doesn't etc...
So what are the "best practices" from y'all's perspective? - President of Blue-Eyed Panda Website Design Services
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- Empowermom
- Hero Rocketeer
- Posts: 476
- Thanks: 32
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OMG! This is my all time favorite question. This is the ultimate "value builder" for you as a web designer. A chance to use bragging rights (within reason of course).
CAVEAT:
I have the luxury of picking and choosing my clients and only do projects which interest me. Even so, after 25+ years of doing this, the rules haven't changed.
By choice or not, a client is a client is a client, and I am a stickler about getting things perfect for each one. The beauty of this is I can lay out a few necessary boundaries in a bit more assertive fashion than those who rely solely on income from web design.
"Demos" are designed to show off a template's "potential." A client may not "need" all the extensions which are showcased or features displayed the same way as the Demo. Each template is designed to "show you" what is "possible." Clients may elect to use all the features or not, or they may add more as the site is developed.
Each demo has several options available for menu styles. How can a client decide which one they like without a visual, Houston? RT demonstrates alternate styles in the demo. It's just a "choice."
Now then, the above answer will probably satisfy most, but there are those who need more than that. So I am prepared with my "Long Answer" for those who press for more and why this may be the most important question a client may ask:
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It leads to enriching dialogues on both sides, especially for certain techno-challenged clients.
It helps pave the way to enlightenment for those clients who read "Web Design for Dummies" before they found you (and still don't have a clue).
It helps eliminates that dreaded argument, "Well! I've got a friend who can do this if all you need is a template!" I no longer cringe when I hear that. I just say, "You are more than welcome to join RT and you or the friend can do it. I honestly won't be offended. If you need, I have consulting fees available. It only took me a few decades to learn how."
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On rare occasion, someone will ask about this consulting "alternative" and how much it costs. It seems to them they could save money on a D.I.Y. site.
Then I calmly, and reverently explain D.I.Y. consulting arrangements cost double, UP FRONT, and "no dear, it is not a joke and I make no exceptions to this rule." :shock:
After they close their mouth and their eyes quit bulging, I explain it requires twice the time (or more) to rework and retool mistakes made initially by others instead of just getting the job done right the first time. And of course, there's the extended time it took because they didn't use you to begin with.
This usually leads to silence on the issue and a boundary of professionalism has been drawn. It's a win/win either way. If I'm not getting paid, at least I can refer them to the Forum here and save myself time and expense.
After the initial consult, I send each client to sites I have developed AND RT. I make a point of telling them which sites I developed are RT or "derived" from one of their templates at some point. I ask them to select 3 templates and take a few notes on WHY. This streamlines the process and saves them money.
Whether or not they use an RT template is irrelevant. It saves time (time = client's money). They can browse without time constraints, go through their own creative/selective process, it's stress free and there's no charge.
RT saves US (me AND the client) hundreds of hours and helps avoid exhaustive (usually late night) hours and headaches. I don't have to design endless templates which won't be used. I don't have to pressure the client for CONTENT (initially)
nor do I have to create something before I've been paid.
Add to the above server space, time, and maintenance to keep each demo upgraded. RT adds the "cherry on top" by offering a multitude of styling choices within EACH template. It's a great visual aid. (For all the above, I'm watching little clouds of gratitude wafting gently from me to the RT Gods.)
Summary:
So get your client to think of their site as a house. Essentially, a template is the "architectural plan" for your site. Clients determine the function for a particular purpose. We must know the construction codes, building materials, design trade and trends. Most people can't build a "quality" home on their own. That's why they have us to be their "General Contractor"!
We supply the foundation and framework. This should be obvious to your client long before a "template" has been discussed. Clients can relate to this analogy. After all, who builds a house without plans? A website is no different. I never proceed until a potential client understands this.
You must start with a good, solid plan to build a home. Then you modify each room (module/extension) to your own specs. The plan ("layout") may fundamentally be the same as others, but the interior design for each room is critical to presenting a unique style which will set you apart from the masses.
Each RT demo is designed to show each template's layout with the most popular features (at the time) demonstrated to the fullest extent possible. Obviously, once you customize a template and provide custom content your way, it will rarely look like the original demo. (And why would we want it to?)
The "house" thing makes it easy for non-technical people to understand "why" web designers are necessary. Can't build a house until the architect's plans are approved, right? It works for me anyway.
And for the record.... NEVER use the short answer. Brag a little and earn some respect for our hard work.
Have a great day!
Carol - Last Edit: 14 years 3 weeks ago by Empowermom.
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- Martin Simpson
- Hero Rocketeer
- Posts: 276
- Thanks: 0
- President Blue-Eyed Panda LLC
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OK, wow - great thorough response --- BUT...
I am really asking the more particular question about the possible best practices when it comes to designing a navigation system to be on the left or on the top.
I wanted opinions on one versus the other.
I completely understand that the client will be the final say on the matter -- even to their own detriment sometimes --- haaha...
But I guess what I mean is like this -- If I right aligned my entire site I would be told be folks that people with reading disabilities would suffer from that site - or if the text were centered....
So I was wondering if there were any standards in place for the location of the menu navigation that would guide us similarly?
Just because the client LIKEs something - doesn't make it best practice - and I want to be able speak about such things with the client when it comes up. - President of Blue-Eyed Panda Website Design Services
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- Empowermom
- Hero Rocketeer
- Posts: 476
- Thanks: 32
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Sorry, I DO have a tendency to ramble. LOL!
There is no simple answer, but I'll try. LOL!
In short, it depends on how complex your navigation system is going to be. You need to know which format will best serve your needs before you can make this determination. It will require quite a bit of pre-planning.
The more complex the site, the more a Top Menu becomes the logical choice. As to the top "location" being an industry standard, I would think most people want to see the "Table Of Contents" clearly so they can decide which way to proceed. Generally speaking, people see the TOP before scanning content below the header.
Your menu is your "Store Directory." You can find them at the center of every mall and conveniently located throughout the complex. Your frontpage is the center of your site. Visitors get a complete visual with a Top Menu which can't be provided "as easily" and compactly on a Side Menu. A Top Menu is a better road map.
Here's my analogy of the two: A Top Menu is in plain site on every page (usually). If the visitor has to go to "Customer Service" (my analogy of multiple side menus) to find something, they'll leave the building rather than scroll for it.
Next: Block (Side) Menus require large amounts of real estate as a site becomes more complex.
Side "Menus" were the "first" in the industry and were pretty simple. They were nothing more than html links all dressed up in pretty clothes. Then a new era dawned. Content Management. It opened up possibilities that those simple menus could not master.
As sites have grown and become more complex, often covering many areas of interest under one roof without needing to build separate sites, menus have also become more complex. Frankly, the Top Menu gained wide popularity due to Java. We could make them pretty and interesting.... lots of bells and whistles which held the visitors interest. And then they become necessary as sites grew in scope and function. In the beginning.... you were stuck with links spanning an entire Side Column. LOL!
And then we come to practicality: A site with less than 10 pages may benefit from a simple side menu. Short and sweet would work there. Anything over 10 pages and a top menu may be in order. It's all based on content, content, and (in case you forget) content. This is followed by ease of use. Thus, you must consider how you want to group your information and how to get your visitor there quickly.
Either way, your navigation structure is, in my opinion, the most important element of your site. To make a valid determination on which way to go probably requires a few consultations and a DETAILED knowledge of the content you will use, how complex the subject matter, how many Sections and Categories you will have and how many child items will be required beyond that.
I lean towards the Top Menu because, first and foremost, it's what people currently expect on a professional site (check all the major sites). And then you get to decide, based again on content, whether you can reasonably use a split-menu vs. drop down. Again, nested categories and child items will rule here.
There's a good reason these complicated navigation systems have evolved. They help with the K.I.S.S. principal on a site and free up screen space for more important things, like information.
Finally, no matter how humble a site may be initially, the Top Menu allows for expansion without the need to swap out later when the site has grown. That's the goal isn't it?
Now then, as to alignment, I'm trying to imagine how this affects one with disabilities. Generally speaking, I don't think it does. Yet clearly, it would be even MORE important to be streamlined and organized for those who do have disability issues.
I would suggest perusing the World Wide Web Consortium for guidance as the considerations are too exhaustive to post here. Here's a good place to start: www.w3.org/standards/webdesign/
I consider the Top Menu "essential" and the Side Menu a helper menu or something to add emphasis on a particular subject for a particular "page."
And think about this. RokStories, RokTabs, RokFeatures, RokScroller, etc. are Menus! Each is nothing more than a dressed up link which leads you to a particular place. Each have value and serve various functions.
I'm anxious to hear other's views.
P.S. The Top Menu, utilized properly, eliminates the need for "old school" Site Maps which were tedious and required alot of coding to get it right. God Bless Joomla for taking that headache away!
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- Empowermom
- Hero Rocketeer
- Posts: 476
- Thanks: 32
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Martin Simpson wrote:
OK, wow - great thorough response --- BUT...
I am really asking the more particular question about the possible best practices when it comes to designing a navigation system to be on the left or on the top.
I wanted opinions on one versus the other.
I completely understand that the client will be the final say on the matter -- even to their own detriment sometimes --- haaha...
But I guess what I mean is like this -- If I right aligned my entire site I would be told be folks that people with reading disabilities would suffer from that site - or if the text were centered....
So I was wondering if there were any standards in place for the location of the menu navigation that would guide us similarly?
Just because the client LIKEs something - doesn't make it best practice - and I want to be able speak about such things with the client when it comes up.
I know you are serious about this and want solid information, which I addressed in prior post, but I just can't resist a little sideline for some web design humor and a giggle for the day:
When "folks" (not to be confused with seasoned web designers) start digging away at your hard work asking you to justify what you've done, or their "do-gooder" instincts kick in to assure you obey all the "disability" requirements, or make you feel the need to explain, just refer them to the WWC while assuring them you are covering all those bases. Here's the link again: www.w3.org/standards/webdesign/
Think of it this way. You are the doctor. They are the patient. Sometimes, you just don't need to explain WHY you prescribed an aspirin instead of opiates. If they want that, tell them you offer PAID training.
and then..... "OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!"
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