Should navigation for a website be on the left or right side? That was question posed by a friend.
One of our directors has a significant other who has been doing web work for us at a very reduced price. He tells us that the new site needs to have the menu selections on the right side, that that is where people look first. I must be weird, because that is not where I look first. When I surf around the web, I see very few that are not on the left side. Do you have any links or information that would clear up this particular issue?
The right side is not a prevalent menu location. Here’s a link to a study about it — http://www.leveltendesign.com/blog/general/by-brent/usability-study-for-right-side-website-menu-location/.
What he may be referring to is how people scan web pages. The pattern is called the “Z”. Starting at the top left corner people typically scan slightly diagonally across the page to the right side. They usually pause here for a split second to see what’s there. Then they scan across the page to the left side and check that out. Then they scan to the center of the page and see what’s there. If nothing is interesting in any of these places they then go elsewhere.
The right side/edge/column of a page is usually reserved for news or links to featured content on information sites -or- advertising links on commercial sites. Main navigation usually appears at the top or left side. (I will sometimes place navigation to the main site sections at the top of the page and then use the left column for navigation within a section.) The center of the page is reserved for primary content although that can chunked up into columns or boxes, especially on home and main section pages.
Putting the main navigation on the right side would make the site distinctive and could be interesting from a design perspective. If the site were about design it could be a good idea.
The important thing is to remember the audience for the site. What do they expect when they arrive at the site? I would guess they are comng to the site for information either because they searched or were referred by another site or got the URL from a friend or brochure. How old would these visitors be? Men or women? What is their experience on the web?
Making some assumptions I would guess the visitors to your site are 30s or above, men and women, with varying web experience based on their age. They have a need for information. I don’t think they want to figure out a site’s navigation. So, I would vote for top or left navigation.
Keep it simple, basic and present the best information you can. This is a case, I think, where Function follows Form.
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