For desktop design, I am used to having a menu item or small blip on a certain topic, and then when the user wants more details, taking them to a “landing page”.
In the past, I was told this was a good design, and better than having lots of menus.
However, with responsive and mobile-centric websites, is taking such an approach still okay?
For example, I am building a website for myself and on the home page I have 5 boxes each containing a “service” (e.g. Responsive Web Design). Each box is hyperlinked. If the user wants to learn more about that service, then when they click on it, they would be taken to a landing page with all kinds of info on RWD.
Again, is this the right approach to take when it comes to RWD and mobile users?
Again, is this the right approach to take when it comes to RWD and mobile users?
I get the distinct impression your site is considered to be the same as an old-fashioned “Mom & Pop Store” which only has one entrance. It is better to consider your site as an open market and every stall is yours! Customers browse for their requirements and may on the offchance linger and hopefully some stop and buy your goods.
When your site is published, external links, browser usage statistics and SEO traffic will dictate which are your “Landing Pages”. Therefore every page should be Mobile Friendly and each have a good internal link structure (preferablly common to all pages).
Have you taken the time to monitor your previous sites’ logs?
Sounds similar to this approach, which the article seems to think is good.
I think the concern is that if this replaces a conventional menu, the 5 sub-pages will not link directly to its 4 sibling pages, forcing users to go back through the “homepage” first to reach them.
The question was regarding a website I am trying to build for a new side consulting business I hope to start.
Maybe my OP was unclear.
I have been working the last week or two on creating a row of five boxes which represent services I hope to offer (e.g. Responsive Design).
My original plan was to hyperlink the box, heading, and/or description and when a user clicks on it, he/she would be taken to a “landing page” on said topic.
Maybe a potential customer needs help with building online traffic, sees that I can help with SEO, clicks on that service, and then is taken to a page which have all kinds of info and more links and subsections on SEO.
So, I was wondering if such an approach is “old school”, or if it is okay to have that kind of a work-flow on a responsive site.
Approach #1:
When a user clicks on a “service” then he/she would be taken to a page which explained the service in detail. Such a page would be an end stop.
Approach #2:
When a user clicks on a “service” then he/she would be taken to a page which would explain the service, but would also serve as a “landing page” with links to other related content. (Similar to how you pick up the newspaper, flip to the “Sports” section, and then read from there.)
I don’t think this approach would force users to go back to the home page. If you were reading some content about Responsive Web Design - that you found out about on the “RWD landing page” - then when you were done with that article, you could navigate back to the RWD landing page, or go all the way back to the home page, or go somewhere else.