So, how do you make the new site a little bearable to use?
Here I have included some ideas that you should keep in mind when creating a SharePoint site from scratch.
Mind you, this is not some masterclass on UI design.
Its just me sharing my experience on SharePoint sites over the years.
So, lets get started.
Whenever they need some information, it should be right there.
But imagine if the same person dialed a call center to get the same info.
They need to wait a long time to get the desired thing.
And sometimes, the correct info is missing altogether.
Imagine how the user should feel, then.
The same thing can happen with a poorly designed SharePoint site.
So, here goes some pointers to help you do that.
Implement Flat Design
This terminology is all the rage on SharePoint these days.
But what does this mean?
Earlier, there were sites and subsites which were part of a single collection.
Sites were interlinked to each other.
The main problem here was when you needed to transfer the same site to a different place.
Or maybe you needed to change permissions.
This structure made it very difficult to do that.
With a flat structure, there is no subsite present.
Users can access files easily with a better navigation system.
All individual sites are part of a single collection now.
you’re able to link these together with a central site (a.k.a.
Hub site), which I will cover below.
All these individual sites can then contain their own stuff.
Lets say a Marketing site will have the documents, announcements, and lists for that team only.
So a person opening SharePoint will know exactly where to go if they need to access something specific.
Think of it as the homepage of your intranet.
It will have links to different departments, which I mentioned earlier.
This is a key feature of hub sites.
This is what joins the individual sites together in one place.
Coffee and email, right?
So, placing the appointments and announcements at the top of every page is a must.
I always take a stab at keep the calendar on the side pane.
This is super useful as anyone could click there and see what they need to do for the day.
You could place a weather web part at the top if you wish.
It gives off a clean look instead of keeping white spaces on your site.
Take a look at this site that I created earlier.
So the user can get to the shared docs without scrolling all the way down.
You should look to keep only the things that you access frequently here.
Quick link acts like a pathway to all the different places on your site.
Also, remember one thing.
Your hub site should contain links to the separate team sites.
Keep it short and impactful.
Do not just populate it with links and make it look clunky.
This includes revenue, profits, projected sales, etc.
Another tip to remember is every space is precious on your communication site.
Do not just go and add data charts all over the parent site.
Adding them to the sidebar is the perfect place to merge with other contents of a page.
What do you think about this?
Embrace Top Navigation Bar
I have already talked about the importance of a central navigation bar.
For a small organization, you may think about skipping this section entirely.
But without a nav bar, you will get lost.
Make the users path to a certain site as easy as possible.
So design the navigation section accordingly.
Add Images to Make the Site Pop
Humans are more attracted to visual elements.
Even if there is a simple link, a background image makes things look much better on any webpage.
Your SharePoint site is no different.
Images will add a visual pop to the overall feel and will make the site look good.
But do not overdo this strategy.
That, in turn, will make the site cumbersome and load painfully slowly.
Also, keep some white spaces between the sections of the SharePoint site.
This makes the sites contents easier to read.
This is especially evident when a page has a lot of text.
Just look at the image to understand the difference between the two.
I have created one page with some plain text and another that has some images to it.
Just note the difference it makes to the end user when they engage with the text.
Keep Styles Consistent
Have you seen websites designed with a consistent theme in mind?
The fonts, headings, and sections have a similar thing going on.
That reduces distractions and makes users engage more with the webpage.
So venture to keep the fonts consistent throughout the site.
If your organization uses a certain font, attempt to add that to the SharePoint site.
SharePoint provides you with a range of color palettes to use.
That way, a heading will start with the deepest shade and lightens as you go down the page.
The site below demonstrates perfectly this.
Think of these as plugins to popular services that can be pinned.
Right now, you’re free to add Yammer, Twitter, and Viva Insights feeds.
Try keeping the feed block short.
Do not make it occupy a whole section of a page.
And keep only the recent three posts.
If a user really wants to view an old post, they can use those services separately.
Otherwise, the users will be left with an infinite scrolling section.
While adding such sections greatly impacts usability, try adopting a low-key state here.
Treat this more like an accessory, not a necessity.
Here the developers behind SharePoint have showcased designs for sites depending on their use cases.
SharePoint being highly customizable, allows you to create a design based on those templates.
Templates are a quick way of preparing a SharePoint sites structure.
Consult With Your Team
Every organization is unique to their own.
A design that works for the Marketing team may not work for R&D.
So before you roll designing, take pointers from the members about the elements of the site.
Then design a skeleton based on the feedback.
Continue the conversations back and forth during the whole design process.
This article is not the only guide you should probably design a great SharePoint site.
That is enough tips for today.
See you next time on some other SharePoint tutorial.
