Nowadays, you have to make every effort to keep a website visitor. If a user doesn’t like your website design or its logic, you can be sure that this user will immediately leave the page and never come back. That is why every project should create a balanced and effective web design.
Author: Nataliia Syvynska, TestMatick, https://testmatick.com/
The first thing you think about when you hear the word “balance” is coherence. A dictionary describes balance as a correct required arrangement of some parts, components, etc. that have equal importance.
If we expound this definition in the context of web design, then we can speak about the right correlation of product elements that are simple and enjoyable user-friendly. This is also defined by the generic term of User eXperience or UX. So the question that comes up is “What is considered to be “correct” and who determines it?”
To answer this question, let’s recall some historical moments. Who is commonly believed to be the most attractive woman in Ancient Egypt? Of course, it’s Nefertiti. But what is the secret of her beauty that is admired even by our contemporaries? It is quite simple, actually. This is about facial symmetry. It is thought that a person with a symmetrical face is more attractive.
Let’s now apply this hypothesis to web design. A project will be successful only if there is a balance. This is the topic of this article.
Types of Balance in Web Design
There are two kinds of balance in web design: symmetrical and asymmetrical. Some specialists also distinguish vertical, horizontal, and radial kinds of balance. We will now analyze them in more detail.
Symmetrical balance implies the harmonious arrangement of the elements. It is like a mirror image where the elements are equally disposed on either side of the center (both vertically and horizontally). Depending on the chosen axis, the balance can be horizontal or vertical. Of course, it may seem too simple and ordinary but this is the symmetrical balance that remains as relevant as ever even nowadays.
Nevertheless, symmetry doesn’t always mean a strict and official style. It can be amazing too. The example of it is a radial symmetry when the main element revolves around its axis and creates the right dynamics of the whole website. When you follow the principle of symmetry during web product development, you don’t have to make all the components identical. The main rule is to arrange all the elements evenly. Thus, no particular area will occupy the whole attention of a user.
There is one more interesting unusual kind of symmetry called translational symmetry. It is based on a vector. Its usage creates the effect of objects to shift to some side. You can make a translational symmetry using the same details and elements on the site.
Asymmetrical balance is an equally common type of web design. It is considered as right asymmetry when there is a balance. It has been well said that “Moderation in all things”. The main peculiarity of asymmetrical balance is the fact that visitors are focused on one particular object with several elements. It is very important not to overuse the details since any user will definitely leave the site if there is complete chaos.
To test the design of websites, many techniques have been created over the years for testing and validating product hypothesis and particular design decisions. These methods range from well-known lab-based usability studies to those that have been more recently developed like session recording, a method of recording the actions that real users take while they interact with a site. A/B testing, proposing two or more versions of a web page to see which is most effective, can also be used to assess which is design are better.
Conclusion
Every specialist who works with web design should properly assess the significance of the balance in web design. If a website has been designed properly, a user will be satisfied with it. He/she will easily perceive and digest all the information. Only the balanced product can create a harmonic impression and simplify the site navigation. And this is the right way for a site to perform its main function that has been initially developed by employees of software testing companies.