It’s important that you understand the primary process involved when designing a successful website: keeping the target audience in mind. When it comes to developing kids’ websites, it’s crucial to know children’s interests and habits in order to determine what you can and cannot place on the pages.
Apart from that, there are other important factors you should consider. Unlike adults, kids may not be able to control themselves when surfing the internet, and as a developer, you have to keep the experience of being online fun but safe for them.
In recent years, developers have established many companies delving in web design. If you’re unfamiliar with any of them, meet this Melbourne web design company, Pixelstorm. It has created a reputation for developing age-friendly sites and providing excellent digital marketing solutions. You can turn to similar establishments out there the next time you want website management or search engine optimisation (SEO) services.
Gone are the days when only teens and adults had access to the internet. Kids can now visit practically any website for entertainment and learning purposes. Of course, not all web pages are appropriate for them. If you’re planning on creating a kid-friendly site, here’s a list of tips that might help you:
- Make It Colourful And Attention-Grabbing
When developing a website for children, it’s a must to play with colours. Make the pages vivid and bright. Colours are captivating to the eye, and if you use little or no colouring on the website, a kid may lose interest very quickly. Children also usually prefer striking backgrounds, easy-to-read typefaces, and cute characters.
- Use Animation
There’s a reason most kids love watching animated films and shows: they never fail to entertain. With that, place animated objects throughout your website. Whether they’re moving in one spot or dancing across the page, they’ll surely catch children’s attention. There are plenty of animation tools available that’ll help you develop interesting intros and charming animated objects that can do all kinds of actions and even talk.
- Do Not Underestimate Kids
You might think of kids as individuals who may not be capable of solving or understanding complex matters. However, that couldn’t be further from the truth.
When developing your kid-friendly site, keep in mind that children are just as smart as most adults. The only difference is that they haven’t had the same experiences as adults. While they might not understand quantum physics, if you present a certain topic using concepts and words they can grasp, you’ll be surprised how easily they’ll pick up the subject.
Don’t assume that one’s age has anything to do with their intelligence. Treat children as bright individuals who can absorb knowledge about anything as long it’s given to them in an uncomplicated manner.
- Respect Children’s Privacy
You’re required by law to adhere to set privacy regulations when developing sites for kids under 13 years old. Rules such as the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) have been implemented to ensure that websites state how acquired information from visitors will be used.
When collecting data from kids, you must first get their parent’s or guardian’s permission. Make it easy for parents to find out what kind of information you’d like to request. In some cases, a parent would want to withhold some personal information such as their child’s full name to keep them safe, so you should allow them to do so as much as possible.
- Be Careful With Language
You can still include textual content when developing a kid-friendly site. But images and animations should outweigh words to make the experience fun and interactive for your young visitors.
The language you’ll use will depend on the age of the target audience. For instance, wordy pages will make the experience boring for very young kids and may be a waste of time. Use simple terms that kids can comprehend, and avoid complicated sentences and long paragraphs.
Language is a sensitive factor when developing a kid-friendly site. Using vulgar or foul language may cause your website to be pulled down. Keep things fun, easy to understand, and exciting so children will keep coming back to the website.
- Minimise Distractions
It’s easy for kids to shift their attention to other things. A random banner or pop-up ad may make a child forget what they were supposed to do on your website. Allow only minimal or no ads on your site so young visitors can focus and you may increase your website traffic as well.
Takeaway
When developing your website, remember that you have to keep kids engaged and entertained at the same time. Instead of using straightforward questions, for example, develop a game around those that kids can play. By following the tips above, you’ll be able to create a safe, kid-friendly website in no time.
- About the Author
- Latest Posts
After spending 11 years in London working in the television industry for the BBC, Jennie McNichol made the move to Perth in 2010. As the Co-Founder and Editor of Buggybuddys, she has been able to use her experience and passion for helping families to create a trusted online resource for parents across Perth.
Jennie is the proud mother of two daughters, aged 14 & 12 and is a big advocate of the family-friendly lifestyle that Perth has to offer.