The World Wide Web was initially a collection of pages of text. Over time, the content was enriched with graphics, colors, animations, and illustrations. With Web 2.0, websites have become more like pieces of art than a collection of Web 1.0 pages of text. Understanding visual communication and applying it to web and app design can make or break the success of your web or app.

1. Decide on the color scheme. Colors are the first things humans notice. This is the first deciding factor that will determine whether the user will spend more time on your site or leave immediately. If your organization or business has an official color scheme, incorporate it into your site design. For inspiration, take a look at how famous brands have done this. Keep the target audience in your mind. Consider how age, gender, ethnicity, nationality, and religion determine color choice.

2. Use the right typeface. Use fonts that are aligned with your brand philosophy. Apps that deal with kids and kids’ stuff can use fun fonts. Professional sites and apps need professional fonts like Times New Roman and Courier. Use the appropriate size for headings and subheadings.

3. Design the layout. Organize the content in a way that guides the user in a systematic and logical way. With a thoughtful layout design, you can guide the user to a particular section where you can give important information about your product or how to buy it. Don’t clutter the page. Let the text (and content) breathe!

4. Use empty or negative spaces. White space is not as important and useful as it is in web and app design. Crowded data on the page is a big turn off.

5. Balance it out. Balance is an important element in visual communication. The overall design must be balanced. View artwork for inspiration on how to balance all the elements on the page.

6. Use illustrations. Human beings communicate 70 percent through visual signals. A picture is worth a thousand words; the adage is not useless. Instead of using a thousand words, use an image. A web page should not contain more than 400 words anyway.

7. Use simple and universal icons and symbols. They should be easy to figure out but interesting and creative.

8. Keep it simple. Set simplicity as the benchmark for your web and app design. Avoid the use of unnecessary data, text and graphics.

Applying these tips will instantly improve your website and app design. The following are some additional tips that will further enhance your understanding and use of visual communication in web and application design.

* Take a visual communication course from any art school or institute.

* Take the online course of Visual Communication (Massive Open Online Course).

* Or see visual communication and graphic design tutorials on the web.

* Browse famous websites and apps to see how they have implemented it.

* In illustrations and icons, use human elements. The image of a machine or device becomes more attractive if a human operates it.

* Use negative space to improve the design and layout of the site.