Whether you design for yourself or for clients, there should be a sense of personality in every website you bring to life. All of the basic design ideas have been done hundreds, thousands, potentially even millions of times. It's very easy to design a website that looks great but which just falls flat when visitors click into the site. They have seen the basic design idea many times before, the colors do not grab their attention, and ultimately they lose interest before they even know what the site is about.

It's a shame. Some great websites can be overlooked because there it doesn't look as if anything of value lives on the site.

Then there are websites that have a real sense of personality to them. Their designs can be very similar to other pages, but there is something that makes them feel very individual. This is the personality of the designer, the website owner, or someone, shining through. Unfortunately, there are far more boring, generic websites in existence today than truly original ones with bold personality.

If you want to design with more personality so your sites stand out and grab attention, here are four quick tips to get you thinking more creatively:

#1: Don't be afraid to go casual.

Most people don't have a really formal, uptight personality when they are just sitting in their living rooms talking on the phone with friends. Personalities tend to be more casual, so don't be afraid to go casual when creating a website. Unless there is a reason it needs to be starched stiff, take things down a notc
h and approach the subject from a more lighthearted perspective. You will see your design ideas change considerably.

#2: Lighten up the content.

Designers focus a lot on the actual design process and color selection for a site, but you can't deny that the content speaks to users on a very deep level. You can go a long way to infuse your website with personality just by putting some personality in the written text. If you are not providing the content as a part of your design services, ask to read some of the content before you start designing. If there is a clear personality in the text it can help you come up with matching design features for that personality.

#3: Use custom images with lots of personal flavor.

Images can be great tools for infusing a website with personality. You can go with stock photos and clipart that has been used by many others or you can take the time to create something special just for one specific website. It won't always be economically feasible to take the time to create something original for every site you create for clients, but it is something you could throw out there to increase the individuality of a site.

#4: Ask questions so you fully understand what the website is about and who it is speaking to.

You can't put the right personality into a website if you don't know who you are designing for. This means getting in touch with the person hiring you to design the site as well as the people who will hopefully be viewing the website.

A website with personality will always do better with viewers than a website with no sense of personality. It doesn't matter how well designed it is!