There was a time when use of flash was the in thing in web designing; at least because one would not know what to expect from a site until they clicked the link on search engines like Google. Unfortunately for the flash users, these days seem to getting behind us as technology releases one invention after another. The new feature by the name Google Instant Preview has made the designers capitalizing on flash rethink their strategy. Google Instant Preview allows you to see a snapshot of the site you are about to enter on the side of the link by placing your mouse over the link. What seems like a small difference during design might actually translate to a huge difference on the search engines. To benefit from Google Instant Preview, you might want to utilize the following tips.
First of all, you might want to go easy on the flash and instead stick to simpler designs. Google Instant Preview does not support flash and what appears as an enticing image on your site will just appear as the default image the system displays in place of your beautiful flash when it cannot provide a visual from a site. Go simple on the design so that it can be easily viewed on the instant preview. The preview of your site should also focus on solving the perceived problem of the visitor or client.
The second rule is to minimize clutter on your site. If you are familiar with Google Instant Preview, you already know that it provides a small image of your site. If your site is full of clutter such as unnecessary icons and ads, they will make the site look messy turning away potential customers. You can solve this problem by putting all the extra content at the footer. Minimizing clutter should be done for all pages and not just the home page because any indexed page on your site can appear on Google search engine.
The structure of the content on your site will also matter a great deal as will the appearance of the text on the preview. Make sure the content is easy to scan and well organized with headings, sub-headings, short sentences, paragraphs and paragraph breaks. Avoid long paragraphs with no paragraph breaks as they are likely to intimidate your viewers. Let the headlines stand out in terms of contrast and also the content in order to grab the attention of viewers and search engines. Also, make use of white space as it will look better on the preview. This will help your viewers scan the content easily and find what they are looking for.
Another thumb rule is to avoid creating the impression of being cheap. Examine the fonts, clip art and colors that you are using to determine whether you are just doing cheap websites and using elements that do not represent your brand. When it comes to design, stick to the basics and avoid going overboard in order to create the image of professionalism.
