Designing an effective board is essential for any business looking to establish a strong online presence. A well-designed board attracts visitors and provides an intuitive and enjoyable user experience, fostering engagement and conversion. This guide offers practical and actionable advice on various aspects of board design, from creating compelling hero sections to leveraging social proof effectively. By following these guidelines, you will be well-equipped to design boards that are visually appealing, user-friendly, and optimized for achieving your goals. Whether you are a seasoned designer or a novice, these principles will help you create websites that stand out and deliver results.

For more best practices on board creation, read the article Storytelling on a Board: Start with the Why. 

Hero Section (Banner)

Creating an effective hero section on your board is crucial for capturing user attention and quickly conveying your board's main message.
Here are tips for building a successful hero section:

1. Clear and Engaging Headline: use a headline that briefly and clearly explains what your board offers. It should be catchy and inviting.
2. High-Quality Images or Video: use high-quality and relevant images or videos. Consider using images with people to evoke emotion, ensuring the person isn't cropped awkwardly. You can also use images where the person is looking towards the message or button to draw attention. You can find such images or videos on the company's website or in the company's image database that can be uploaded to Folloze Company Media Library for reuse.
3. Strong Call to Action (CTA): include a CTA button that encourages immediate action, such as "Get Started," "Learn More," or "Demo Now."
4. Clean and Simple Design: maintain a minimalist and clean design to ensure your main message isn't lost. Less is more. 
5. Concise and Impactful Texts: use short texts that get to the point and clarify what users will get from your service or product.
6. High Color Contrast: ensure the text and buttons stand out against the hero image background. High contrast helps them pop. Use the tint to achieve this goal
7. Full Responsiveness: make sure the hero section looks good and functions well on all devices – desktop, and smartphone. Add an image for a mobile mode.

Before	After
	Use images with people to create emotion.

 

Before	After
	Use high-quality video to create engagement. Add tint to create enough contrast between the background and text.

Social Proof to Boost Credibility and Increase Sales Online

Social proof is a powerful tool for enhancing credibility and boosting sales on your board.
Here are several effective ways to integrate social proof into your board:

1. Use of Statistics: display numerical data that highlights user numbers, sales, or other achievements. For example, "Over 10,000 satisfied customers."
2. Customer Testimonials: include positive testimonials from satisfied customers on your boards. Personal testimonials with real names and photos can be particularly convincing.
3. Relevant and Trustworthy Logos: feature logos of well-known companies, reputable media outlets, business partners, or satisfied customers. Logos of recognized brands add significant credibility to your board.

Before	After
	When using Statistics and Feature logos, it's better to use our sections to create this content and not screenshots.

 

Before	After
	It’s better to add photos when you add Customer Testimonials.

Text-Heavy Sections

When dealing with text-heavy sections on a website, it is essential to ensure that the content is easily digestible and not overwhelming for the user.
Here are some guidelines for structuring these sections effectively:

1. Break Text into Manageable Chunks: divide large blocks of text into smaller, more manageable paragraphs or bullet points. Where possible, use icons to support the text. Visual elements can help break up the text and make the section more engaging.
2. Highlight Key Points: use color or bold text to emphasize important points or key takeaways. This helps draw attention to the most critical information.
3. Use White Space: ensure there is adequate white space around and between text blocks. This improves readability and reduces visual clutter.
4. Consider Text Hierarchy: use a clear text hierarchy, with larger fonts for headings and smaller fonts for body text. This helps users understand the relative importance of different pieces of information.

Less is More

1. Simple Icons: use small, simple icons that support the text without drawing too much attention or creating visual clutter. Icons should complement the content, not overshadow it.
2. Uniform Backgrounds: for sections with multiple elements, such as content sections or columns, use a uniform background rather than an image that might create visual noise. If you must use an image, consider adding a color overlay (tint) to reduce the visual load.

Before	After

More Tips 

Before	After
	Add a play button to the thumbnail image to encourage users to take immediate action
	You can highlight a different feature or benefit by giving them a distinct style .
	Use the promoted content to break the structure and highlight content by using different sizes
	It is recommended to use a white background or light colors (it is easier for the eye to read black text on a white background than the opposite) BUT use a strong color, image, or video in the background to break the structure of the board and highlight specific content (use up to 2 sections with a strong background)