Web design companies out there are making millions by doing things that you could easily do yourself with the right information. Don't fall victim to these semi-scams; learn web design so that you can be the one in charge of your website.

Start by reading these tips below to get a handle on design.

Make sure your web design is user friendly to all levels of computer expertise. Sometimes the most professional looking and expensive sites can overwhelm a visitor and they will quickly switch to another site. Have a person you know who is not so well versed on a computer try to navigate your site. If they can find their way around, you know your site is user friendly!

Keep your font type simple on your website. Arial or Times New Roman is perfect for any website. You don't need to get carried away with bubble letters or illegible chicken wings. Exotic fonts might seem cool to you, but your visitors are going to have a tough time reading your site.

Don't use splash pages for your site unless required by law, and especially don't use a Flash intro. Most people just want to get to your content as quickly as possible, and don't care to look at useless splash pages. If you have some amusing content that you absolutely want visitors to see, integrate it into the homepage instead.

Make sure to test early and to test quite often. It's very important that you carry out your site's user interaction and usability tests as early as you can in the design phase of your website. Make sure to keep improving and testing it as your website continues to grow.

Always mark files that must be opened in an external program with an icon. Many sites host PDF files, and less commonly, DOC files, that must be opened in Foxit Reader and Microsoft Word/OpenOffice, respectively. These files should be marked with an icon representing the file type, and a link to download the appropriate viewer if the user does not have it.

Try using easy, maintainable and clear navigation. The placement of your navigation links on a website plays an important part in determining how long a visitor will remain on your site. The navigational structure must be neat, consistent, and easy to access for your users to have a better experience.

Once you have a general idea of how web design works, you can begin to practice with various design features until you find something that's right for you. These tips illustrate just how easy the entire process can be. All you need to do is read the tips carefully and apply them as they're written.