Anybody who visits a website wants to derive some information from it. A poorly designed website with an improper structure is a surefire way to drive users away, especially when they can’t navigate through it to find what they are looking for.
One of the most common mistakes that a novice web developer might make is structuring websites improperly and paying the price later. For instance, a developer or a design agency may add a grid or a column to the body and create its content based on that. Unfortunately, this makes maintaining consistency across the different pages of the website and different devices (such as mobile, desktop, tablet, etc.) very difficult.
Webflow is the solution to structuring websites smoothly and compatibly.
The Efficient Way To Structure Your Website
Knowing the correct way to structure your website saves a lot of time and confusion for a Webflow developer. To do so, one needs to first look into the different features of a Webflow Designer and use it correctly to build a website.
In essence, Webflow allows you to play with the following components; body, section, container, and layout.
- Body: The body is the leading platform on which the entire website is built.
- Section: The section is a full-width element. You can control its height, change the background colour, add a background image or video, or link directly to it. You can also name it to make it easier to scroll and find it. It is also a good SEO practice to add a section.
- Container: The container is an element that has a maximum width. It helps to structure content to the centre of the page in large, wide screens instead of being all over the place.
- Layout: It is the actual layout on which the content is added.
Now, let’s look into the steps that a design agency can use to structure a website efficiently using Webflow.
Steps In Creating A Website Structure
Creating a website structure can be very confusing if you do not know the proper steps to be taken in the correct order. The following are the steps to follow to structure websites efficiently:
1. Create A Hero Section
Building a website with Webflow begins with the hero section. The hero section is the central part of a website. It covers a large portion of the screen and is usually the first thing web users see when they visit the website. The hero section contains essential information about the site, including the site name, what the website is about, what kind of products or services they provide. It gives visitors all the information they need to know about the website.
To create a section, a Webflow designer in India needs to throw a section into the body. You can adjust it by applying a pixel value or by entering a viewport height value. Then, name the section and add a container inside it.
2. Add A Container And Customise It
A container is a div block that contains your content. This is where you add your content, such as text, images, or videos. Of course, the content can also be added to the section, but what makes adding it to the container necessary is how it is displayed to different users.
People do not use the same kind of device with the exact same dimensions of the display screen. Having the content at a fixed dimension may make it uncomfortable or even distorted for devices users than the one the content was intended for. This is what happens when you add your content directly to a section.
A section displays the content in the exact way that it was designed and didn’t adjust the layout according to the display screen. On the other hand, a container makes it easier for people to access your website by modifying the content according to the type of device they are using to view it.
As most Webflow agencies in India will tell you, Webflow has a default container with fixed dimensions, but it can also be customized by adjusting the size and dimension of a regular div block. In addition, grids and columns can be added inside the container to give the website a layout.
You can also directly add your content inside the container and align it according to your needs. The content can be texts, images, or videos. In addition, the navigation bar allows you to have a preview of how the website looks in different screen dimensions.
Suppose any device formats do not display the content appropriately or in a way that you want it to look. In that case, you can adjust the alignment and values till you are satisfied with the particular screen dimension without affecting the way it is displayed for the other screen dimensions.
3. Use Symbols
A website doesn’t just contain a single section. It is made up of several sections with different layouts and content. Creating a new section from the beginning can be a tiring and repetitive process. The process can be made easier for a Webflow designer by using symbols.
If you want to reuse any of the components or sections you can save them as symbols and replicate them on other pages of the same project. However, that doesn’t mean it has to necessarily be this way. You can choose a different layout and play around to find out what goes well along with the previous section.
You can also give different names for different sections to avoid confusion with existing ones. Each of the individual sections can be customized to have specific colours, images, and texts. It's best to keep creating symbols and reusing them based on the specific needs of your website.
Webflow makes structuring your website easier, more efficient, and more enjoyable. It is the new solution to structuring and designing your websites!