This blog explains meaning of website structure, types of website structure and how to choose the best website structure on Meredox IT.
INTRODUCTION
Web design relies on structure to organize webpages into categories and easy-to-follow pathways. If you don’t have a defined website structure, you may lose users to the websites with well-thought-out UI. The look and feel of a website significantly impact a user’s perception of credibility and trustworthiness. A website structure helps users to navigate sites and find the information that they are looking for. Think of a website’s navigation menu — every page has a place. Without a thoughtful structure, visitors can’t use this menu properly. Meredox IT web design tools make it easy for you to design, prototype and structure a website, as you collaborate with other team members and designers.
What is a Website Structure?
Website structure refers to how you organize your website’s content. In other words: the pages and posts on your website. It also refers to the organizational design of a website’s pages. Creating a website structure involves organizing and classifying content to create a layout that’s understandable, accessible, and predictable.
Types Of Website Structure
When choosing the best way to structure a website, one needs to consider the website’s goals, content needs, and user journey. There’s no one-size-fits-all structure. The following are the four most common website structures that you may use in Meredox IT design. They are hierarchical, Linear or sequential, matrix, and database model.
Linear or sequential model: The linear structure places pages in a single logical sequence, one after the other. This model works well for creators who want to showcase a brand, product, or service with minimal content. In a linear model, the site visitor can choose an offering from the home page, they can learn more about it on a secondary page and then convert on the next. They only move on once they’ve found what they need.
Hierarchical model: Hierarchical structures is the most popular and are usually used on sites with a lot of information that needs to be organized for easy searching – like news sites or blogs sites. This structure is ideal for any site size because it organizes content in a tree-like manner. It also ensures a focused and linear flow of information, making it easier for users to comprehend and engage with the content.
Read: Web Development Languages for Front End Web Development
Matrix web structure: Matrix web structure connects the landing page or homepage to subpages through internal links. Matrix-type structure is one of the most common on the internet – and popular for e-commerce websites and large sites, where people are as likely to know what they want as they are to be browsing. Users are in full control and can navigate back, forward, or sideways between different pages.
Database structure: Database structure is a great way to organize information if you want people to be able to search and find it logically. Uses a database to manage content dynamically. It is ideal for sites in need of personalized user experiences. This is another effective site structure if you want to organize much information for easy retrieval. E.g Google.
How To Choose the Best Website Structure
To create a website structure, one needs to map out how to organize the content on the site (homepage, categories, individual page, blog posts). Consider the following factors to design an informative structure of your site:
Goals: Your site’s structure should be determined by the topic and business goals you set for it. The goal stipulates the cultural context that the site exists in and the resources available.
Content: The structure of your website will also be largely determined by the volume and type of content on your site. Meredox IT provides different structures that works better depending on the type and amount of content you have.
User journey: Websites are made to serve users, so it’s important to think about how they will experience and interact with your site and what they expect from it.
CONCLUTION
Web structure is how information is organized and interconnected on a website. An effective site structure improves usability and user experience which makes web structuring an important step in the web design process. Try Meredox IT now.