The Bearzatto

For me, the most important element of this website is a clean presentation that utilizes color and visual hierarchy. “The Bear,” although labeled as a Drama Comedy, is a dark and grounded show. I want my website to reflect the essence of the show. Following the WIU Brand Guidelines, I have chosen to use neutral black text on white background with the branded fonts. The Guidelines also recommend that images focus on an activity or the relationship between the people in the image, rather than having the subject look at the camera. Any screenshot from “The Bear” contains these elements, and uses colors that aren’t flashy, but still add drama. The headings, subheadings, and body paragraphs will be easy to distinguish, and still grab attention. Horton & Quesenbery mention that “clients may request ‘flashy’ designs that ‘pop’ as they look for ways to stand out from competitors. But simplicity can be a great differentiator, where important elements stand out and the site stays true to its purpose” (p. 107). I plan to follow this method of simplicity to follow the genre of the show and my own personality.

Horton & Quesenbery also comment on making content easier to comprehend. They explain how “a large, undifferentiated block of text is like a wall of words – uninviting, difficult to read and understand, and potentially a barrier” (Horton & Quesenbery, p. 114). To combat this wall and make finding information easier, there will be a tab just under the hero image of my website with a “Blog Posts” link. Selecting the link will provide a drop-down menu with the names of each blog for users to select. Selecting a blog will take users to the selected blog, and from there, they have only that blog in front of them, and options to proceed forward or go back. This de-clutters the site by not using a large wall of words containing all the scannable information directly under the “About Me” section that the homepage will be dedicated to.

This site will also feature wayfinding tools to keep users on track for where they are, where they’ve been, and how to get to their next destination. On each of the blog posts, at the top and bottom of the page, there will be a “Back to Home” link, a link with the previous blog on the left, and a link to the next blog on the right. Using the name of the last and next blogs as links lets users know what comes next or if they’ve already been somewhere. A “Back to Home” feature gives users the option to always return to the homepage if they need to restart their journey or find a different path. “A site designed for easy wayfinding provides strong orientation cues so that everyone can use them, no matter how they are accessing the site” (Horton & Quesenbery, p. 91).