The Easy Way to Design Top Tier Websites
Summary
TLDRThis video script serves as a comprehensive guide to crafting top-tier websites, emphasizing the importance of creativity as a process rather than a moment. It outlines key design principles, such as simplicity, the use of similarity and proximity, adequate spacing, and the establishment of a design system. The script also highlights the significance of hierarchy in design, the creative process, and the importance of gathering inspiration and feedback to refine and perfect web design.
Takeaways
- 🎨 Creativity is a process of connecting ideas, not inventing new ones from scratch.
- 🔍 Good design is as little design as possible, focusing on essential features and usability.
- 🖼️ Simplify website design by starting with key functionalities like heading, input field, and button.
- 📏 Use the law of similarity and proximity to group elements and make the design scannable.
- 🔲 Elements need more spacing than you think; start with ample spacing and adjust as needed.
- 🔧 Implement a design system to standardize key elements and streamline the design process.
- 🔠 Use REM units for fonts and margins to ensure adaptability to user preferences.
- 🔵 Select a minimal color palette focusing on legibility and avoiding overwhelming users.
- 🔍 Emphasize important elements using size, weight, and color while keeping overall design minimal.
- 📚 Use sources of inspiration like top-tier websites and design communities to fuel creativity.
Q & A
What is the key principle of good design according to the video?
-Good design is about using as little design as possible, focusing on essential features and making them better and more useful for users.
Why is it a mistake to start designing a website from the header and then going down from there?
-Starting from the header and moving down can slow down the design process and drain creativity. It's better to start with the key functionality or the main selling point of the website.
What is the significance of the law of similarity and proximity in web design?
-The law of similarity and proximity helps simplify the design by grouping elements based on shape, size, color, and spacing. It makes the design more consistent and easier to understand as a whole.
Why is it important to use more spacing than you think when designing elements?
-Users scan the whole UI before focusing on individual elements, so starting with more spacing and then adjusting ensures that the design is scannable and not cluttered.
What is a design system and why is it useful in web design?
-A design system is a set of essential elements and components that can be used consistently across a website or app. It helps maintain consistency and makes the design process more efficient.
How can a design system help with spacing in web design?
-A design system can provide a set of predefined spacing values that are divisible by a certain number (like four), making it easier to choose appropriate spacing quickly.
What are some practical tips for choosing fonts and colors in web design?
-Handpick a few values for fonts and colors and assign them as global variables. Choose a dark and light color for text and background, and two more to add personality. Ensure colors are legible and don't overwhelm users.
Why is hierarchy important in web design?
-Hierarchy helps emphasize certain elements on the page, making it easier for users to navigate and find important actions. It can be achieved through size, weight, and color.
How can you add depth and character to a web design?
-You can add depth by using colors and shadows to elevate important elements. Shadows can replace solid borders, and subtle gradients can add excitement to the design.
What is the creative process for designing a web page as described in the video?
-The creative process involves knowing the basics, finding a source of inspiration, working over those designs in your mind, stepping away from the problem, and being open to adjustments based on feedback.
How can you ensure your web design is scannable and user-friendly?
-Make sure the design is simple enough to be understood as a whole, use the law of similarity and proximity, and emphasize key elements like titles and important actions to help users focus.
Outlines
🎨 Design Principles for Top Tier Websites
This paragraph introduces the key design principles and tips for creating top-tier websites. It emphasizes the importance of creativity as a process and the need to understand the foundational rules of design. The first rule is 'good design is as little design as possible,' advocating for simplicity and focusing on essential features. Common mistakes in website design are discussed, such as overcomplicating the layout and not starting with the key functionality. The paragraph also introduces the law of similarity and proximity, gestalt theory, and the importance of making designs scannable. The need for adequate spacing in design elements is highlighted, along with the suggestion to use a design system for consistency and efficiency, especially in complex projects. The paragraph concludes with advice on using REM units for font size and margins to adapt to user preferences and the idea of setting values as variables for flexibility in design.
🖌️ Crafting a Cohesive Visual Hierarchy
The second paragraph delves into the specifics of design elements, starting with the selection of fonts and colors that are both legible and appealing. It advises against using 'Lorem Ipsum' for design mock-ups due to its lack of context. The importance of line height in relation to font size for better readability is discussed, along with the suggestion to use REM units for consistent text element spacing. The paragraph then moves on to the design of key elements like links and buttons, emphasizing the need for a design system to streamline the process. The concept of hierarchy in web design is introduced, explaining how to use size, weight, and color to emphasize important elements and guide user navigation. The paragraph concludes with the idea that good design often results in less design, but there are exceptions where introducing depth and character can enhance the user experience.
💡 The Creative Process in Web Design
The final paragraph focuses on the creative process behind web design, starting with understanding the basics and seeking inspiration from top-tier websites and design communities. It suggests using platforms like Mobin for design inspiration and emphasizes the importance of studying and understanding the design choices made by others. The paragraph advises taking notes on what makes certain designs appealing and using that insight to inform one's own design process. It also discusses the importance of stepping away from a design problem to allow for new ideas to emerge naturally. The paragraph concludes with the advice to not become too attached to one's initial design, to be open to feedback, and to iterate based on user responses. It encourages action over planning, emphasizing that creativity is both a process and a mindset.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Creativity
💡Design Principles
💡Gestalt Theory
💡Law of Similarity
💡Law of Proximity
💡Design System
💡Spacing
💡Hierarchy
💡Accent Colors
💡Gradients
💡Inspiration
Highlights
Creativity in web design is a process, not a moment, and involves connecting existing ideas rather than creating from scratch.
Good design is about simplicity, focusing on essential features and reducing clutter.
Designers should avoid common mistakes by starting with key functionality rather than the overall structure.
The human brain simplifies and looks for key visual information, suggesting that simple designs are more effective.
The law of similarity and proximity can be used to simplify design by grouping elements and emphasizing the whole.
Designs should be scannable within seconds, aligning with the principle of simplicity.
Spacing is crucial in design, with more space often needed than designers initially think.
A design system is essential for large and complex websites or apps, streamlining the design process.
Defining key design elements and using a system can eliminate the need for a CSS framework.
Spacing, font size, and margins should be adaptable to user preferences, using REM units for consistency.
Choosing colors involves picking a dark and light color for text and background, with additional colors for personality.
Line height is inversely proportional to font size, enhancing legibility and reducing the need for additional margins.
Hierarchy in design is crucial, emphasizing important elements to guide users and highlight actions.
Depth can be added to designs to give character, using shadows and gradients to elevate elements.
Finding inspiration for web design can come from studying top-tier websites or platforms like the Figma community.
The creative process involves knowing the basics, finding inspiration, stepping away from the problem, and being open to feedback.
Testing designs with friends, colleagues, and users is essential for refining the design based on feedback.
Creativity is not just a process but also a state of mind, requiring an open approach to ideas and solutions.
Transcripts
in this video you will learn the key
design principles and practical tips to
build top tier websites consider this a
guide to creativity because creativity
is a process not a moment being creative
isn't about being the first person to
think of an idea it's all about
connecting ideas you don't have to
create new designs from a blank slate
top designers take what is already
present and combine those elements in a
unique way but to be able to do that you
need to know the rules of the game rule
number one good design is as little
design as possible it means focus on
essential features and make them better
and useful for the
users it also means less colors words
and clutter on the
screen here's a common mistake when
designing a website you start with the
header and then go down from there or
you are thinking about the overall
structure how many sections do I need
how wide they should be how should I
design the buttons that that's a lot of
hows each of these questions will slow
you down and drain your creativity
instead ask what's the key functionality
or the main selling point of this
website for a lot of websites it could
be a heading input field and a button
start from there at this point design as
little as possible chances are that's
all you needed anyway don't complicate
websites by adding too many elements
that frustrate users and looks ugly as
well our brain has evolved to simplify
things and looks for key visual
information
only so why not choose the easy way and
keep things
simple it's a win-win situation rule
number two use the law of similarity and
proximity to simplify the design you can
use shape size color and spacing to
group elements gestal Theory emphasizes
that the whole of something is greater
than its parts focusing on how our minds
perceive patterns and holes rather than
just individual elements our brain first
processes the information as a whole and
as we spend more time looking at
something we start to notice the small
details as well so your first goal is to
make the design simple enough to be
understood as a whole in simple words
the design should be scannable within
seconds this ties nicely with the first
rule as well the law of similarity not
only makes the design better and
consistent it's easier to implement as
well
the law of proximity on the other hand
gives you a better understanding of
layout and
spacing rule number three elements need
more spacing than you think when you are
focused on designing a specific element
the space might seem too much to you but
the users scan the whole UI before
focusing on individual elements so start
with a lot of spacing and look at the
design as a whole then start to remove
it until you are happy with the results
but doing this manually becomes boring
and repetitive so you need a system in
place rule number four use a design
system especially if you are designing a
big and complex website or app because
it's made up of essential elements and
components there are multiple ways to
create a design system for a simple
website you just need to Define key
Design Elements and you are good to go
for uis you need more complex and
detailed design system that covers a lot
of scenarios
once you understand the basic design
principles Behind These systems you
don't really need a CSS framework to
style your
websites let's start with spacing you
can use this list to get started or
create your own system just have the
values that are divisible by four now
spacing totally depends on the context
it's a very bad idea to design with
lauram ipsum or vague data because a
spacing that is perfect for this card
can be a disaster for this one the
system is is just there to help you pick
a value quickly so you can play with
different values instead of trying
random values on the fly in the previous
example we started with a lot of spacing
like 40 pixels then bring elements
closer that belong together to do that
pick a value from this system let's try
20 it's still pretty big let's try 12
perfect but generally we use REM units
for font size and margins so the design
can adapt to the user system preference
to assign REM values just divide the
pixel value by 16 the new system will
look something like this a better way is
to set these values as variables so you
can play with different values and see
what works
best same thing for your fonts and
colors handpick few values and assign
them as Global variables you can get
started by picking any one font and type
scale that fits your project there is no
real science in choosing colors so don't
fall for those tutorials or articles
that teach you the psychology of colors
just pick a dark and light color for
your text and background and two more to
add some personality just make sure the
colors are legible and don't overwhelm
the users for the same reason avoid text
to line Center especially for paragraphs
and smaller text size one more point
line height is inversely proportional to
the font size that means smaller text
needs greater line height for better
legibility
greater line height also acts as margin
top on text elements so you don't have
to assign spacing between all text
elements it's already done for you now
that you have your fonts and colors in
place design the key elements start with
the links and buttons you generally need
two types of each one for primary
actions and one for secondary
actions once we have a design system in
place we can start the actual design
process web design is all about putting
the right elements at the right place
with the right sizing that brings us to
rule number five hierarchy is everything
we need to emphasize certain elements on
the page to help users navigate and find
important actions to emphasize important
elements we can use size weight and
color but it's very easy to overdo these
things so start small you will be
surprised to see how little changes can
make a big impact on the overall design
now to emphasize an element ask yourself
what's the first thing the user will
look for I guess it's the title so we
need to emphasize it let's start with
the color but white on black has a
pretty good contrast ratio so let's
reduce the contrast from the secondary
information sometimes to emphasize
something you need to deemphasize other
competing elements in our case it's not
enough so let's add more contrast by
increasing the font weight it's almost
there but you can go a step further
further and increase the font size as
well and when you are done with the
design zoom out to see if the title
stands out from the secondary
information we do this because the users
will scan and look for key information
to focus on if the design isn't
scannable you need to do some
adjustments it could be choosing
different font size a darker color or
simply a bit more spacing do whatever
you can to emphasize the elements you
know the users will look for sometimes
it could be labels and sometimes it
could be values or maybe an icon it all
depends on the context not all H1 tags
will have the same size and margins same
thing is true for other tags as well
sometimes the H3 or paragraph tag could
have a bigger font size than the h2 tag
it all depends on the context just
emphasize the most important elements
and keep the rest of the design as it is
good design is less design and More
Design is almost always results in
uglier design
but like everything in life there are a
few exceptions to this rule as well
introduce depth to add some character
use colors and shadows to elevate
important elements Shadows can also be
used to replace solid borders the closer
something feels to the user the more it
will attract their focus speaking of
Focus use your accent colors to
highlight important
elements one easy trick to add a bit of
excitement is by replacing a solid color
with a subtle
gradient you could also work on your
lists and tables to make them more fun
and engaging for the users and try using
cards for Bland
elements but the question is how do you
get these ideas in the beginning I said
creativity is a process not a moment now
it's time to explain that process step
one know the basics that we have covered
already also read these books they have
some really good practical tips to build
top tier websites the second step is
finding a source of inspiration you can
look at the top tier websites and study
their style or check out some amazing
work on figma
community I personally use mobin to take
design Inspirations for my projects so I
asked them to sponsor this video and
thankfully they agreed say you are
designing a testimonial section for a
finance app go to filters and search for
testimonial section then set the app
category to finance
now we have the testimonial section for
some top tier apps in the world now look
around and save the ones you like to
your
library whether you are designing for
mobile or a full-blown web app mobin has
a huge library of tried and tested
designs so definitely include it in your
design
process once you have gathered enough
Inspirations it's time to work over
those designs in your mind trust is
crucial for finance apps so the
designers Must Have Spent A lot lot of
time and research on the testimonial
section let's try to look at these as
users and make a note of key things you
like about these designs for me they
were simple and unique I really like the
ones with a human face and simple
language I hate generic testimonial
sections that have a bunch of reviews
with no emotions so I have few ideas now
we need two to three good reviews
ideally with great images and we need
big and bold text to emphasize them but
don't go designing yet
once you have some Initial Ideas try to
step away from the problem and do
something else this is a very important
step in the creative process this is not
just limited to design if you are stuck
with a problem watch few tutorials or
read some articles then think of these
potential Solutions in your mind but
don't act on it just take a break and do
something else I promise when you
revisit the problem new ideas will come
naturally to you if this doesn't work it
means you are under a lot of stress
lately or not getting proper sleep so
work on that first let's say you got
some new ideas and finished your design
step five is to not fall in love with it
we all have personal biases and see
things in a certain way so first test
your design by showing it to your
friends or colleagues if they like it
test it with your users and always be
open to adjust the design based on
feedback sometimes you have to design
several ter websites just to discover
that you designed one good pricing
section in the third design just finish
something anything stop planning and
thinking to design and just design it
doesn't matter how good or how bad it is
you just need to prove to yourself that
you have what it takes to produce
something creativity is not just a
process it's also a state of mind
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