Visual Consistency

[Shawn Gossman]

What's your approach to visual consistency across your forum or blog?

How do you keep it unique but also as user friendly as possible?

 

[freelancermaria]

Maintaining visual consistency is indispensable. People will easily identify when you use the same colors and fonts on every page of your blog or forum. Stay organized so visitors have a higher chance of staying longer on your website to read content and participate.

 

[gwolf666]

Visual consistency is definitely essential. If the forum changes its font, color, and other elements without prior notice and several times a year, users may become confused and think the forum has completely changed or that they've entered a similar forum. Therefore, it's important to maintain consistency.

 

[Shawn Gossman]

Not being consistent can bring about too much change that can hurt user experience.

Most people hate change.

 

[Larry]

I always give them a reason to stay. For example, when they see my site they are first introduced with a small summery why we exist and what we are about along side a sign up button to further push it. I keep most of my platform readable to guests because too many restrictions might drive them away. However for the more interesting forums I tend to show the forum and topic title on the index but they can't read the topics and have to register in order to participate. Its a fishing trick basically, once they are on the hook, sometimes its easy to persuade them to join up.