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Whilst there is little opportunity to change the design of some Internet tools (like social media) a club will usually have some ability to change how their website looks. This page links to some resources that discuss some basic web design guidelines.
These days, many Internet tools, including most social media platforms, only provide very limited (if any) opportunity to alter their design. In other words, your club is 'stuck' with how they look. However, the club website usually provides some freedom with regards to how it looks. If your club has set up its own website then it likely will have more options available to alter its design than if it has been provided by a major sporting body. So, the rest of this page will concentrate upon website design.
Amount of freedom to alter the design
A few factors will influence your ability to change the design of your website. If you have used a consultant to set up the website then you may have to pay to make any design alterations. If you have set up the website using a 'free' service then you may be limited to the templates that is provided (and be mindful of any advertising that occurs on the site, which can often be removed with the payment of a 'small' fee). Websites provided by your major sporting body usually have some limited capacity to alter how they look. If someone in your club has the technical skills you may be able to alter the design of some of these websites.
Of course, if you really do not like the design of your website and it is too hard to alter it you always have the option to set up a new website.
How it looks
The design of your website is important and should be influenced by what you want it to achieve. For instance, if it is meant to attract new members then you might want to to be friendly and welcoming, perhaps clearly showing any accreditations that the club has received (eg to show that the club is, say, 'family friendly'). A site that is targeted towards existing members may place an emphasis on providing the latest news, information on entering events, team selections, or easy access to the latest results or statistics. These may provide great functionality, but may also make the home page of the website cluttered and less attractive if you try to cram too much on the first page.
Whilst this site is not meant to be a primer on website design, here are some sources that discuss how to make a website design look attractive:
Sports team website design. Note that this article refers specifically to sites designed using WordPress. However, the ideas that they suggest for design are universal.
Website design for non-profit organisations: This advice is for non-profits, so some aspects may be too general. However, it does refer to thinking about who you are designing the website for.
Top 10 principles of effective web design: This is again more general, but does refer to some specifics like the colours and fonts that you might use.
8 guidelines for exceptional web design, usability and user experience: Again, this is more general advice,. but covers a series of 'basics' of website design.
Whilst it is worth looking at each of these sources, there are some common messages regarding design that they carry:
Know your audience/ be aware of the purpose of the website.
Design the layout accordingly.
Keep the design simple - where possible use lots of 'white space' - avoiding clutter.
Keep the design consistent (for instance, the menus should be in the same place on every page).
Consider the use of photographs/ images where possible.
Use suitable fonts (refer to the sources listed above for a discussion on which are more effective).
When thinking about changing your website design you have to decide what works for your club and what you are capable of doing.
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