Help - Which article page looks better?

28 replies
Warriors,

Wondering if I can get your input on which one of these article pages looks better - or if you like them the same.

I cannot decide whether to use a three column layout or a two column layout on the article pages.

Here's a 3 column:

Natural Botanical Skin Care

And here's a two column:

Stem Cell Therapy: The Forbidden Therapy That Actually Works

Sometimes new eyeballs can see what old, tired eyeballs cannot!

What do you think, and why?

Thanks for your comments.
Allen Graves
#article #page
  • Profile picture of the author Adam Carn
    I usually prefer 2 column layouts over 3 columns but your 3 column layout looks better than the 2 column one. The reason being is that the line length of the article become too long in the 2 column version.

    Thanks,
    Adam
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  • Profile picture of the author Manda
    Hi

    I'll add my vote to the 3 column. That layout looks better to me and I like the easy navigation in the two sidebars.

    Manda
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  • Profile picture of the author RebeccaL
    The 3 column is much better because the paragraph lines are way too long to comfortably read on the 2 column design.
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  • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
    These old, tired eyes like the three-column layout the best, for the shorter line length.

    They do have a request, though. How about adding a code snippet that would allow readers to enlarge the font a notch or two? I've seen it on several newspaper sites, and it makes the pages much easier to read.
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    • Profile picture of the author Dan C. Rinnert
      I like the 3-column layout but not the third column.

      That is, the shorter lines for the article make it easier to read. However, that third column draws the eye away from the article.

      As an article author, I want the reader to focus on my article. I don't want them drawn away by other categories or AdSense or whatnot.

      There are ways of doing a 3-column layout that puts the focus on the article. PM or eMail me if you want to see a sample. (I have a site under development with such a design, but it's not ready for public viewing yet, so I can't link it here.)
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  • Profile picture of the author Jays80
    three-column layout looks better here. in most cases i would go with two-column though.
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  • Profile picture of the author kimvalerio05
    I more prefer the two columns. Its more appealing to me and I guess your article will be more readable if you only use the two column.
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  • Profile picture of the author peetred
    i vote for the three column because of the line length.
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  • Profile picture of the author DavidO
    I like the 3 column version but I suggest increasing the margins for more white space. I would also increase the font size slightly.
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  • Profile picture of the author rype89
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    I think the 2 column layout doesn't appeal to many because it is a different article and the paragraphs are all very long, which makes it looks just like a wall of text. If you could put the same article on both layouts, it'll be easier to compare objectively.
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  • Profile picture of the author TedMarlett
    I like the 3-column also, but could be a little larger print. I do think most people are used to seeing a 3-column site and look for things on each side.
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  • Profile picture of the author The Pension Guy
    The 3 column only seems better because most of us would prefer shorter lines. For me the advantage of the 3 column was the "category navigation" which is missing in the 2 column version...

    I'd use the 2 column with the following modifications:
    - reduce the overall width of the content
    - bigger fonts and wider margins/padding around the text
    - add the category list to the sidebar
    - make the sidebar wider to have some "air" around the sidebar elements
    - maybe the tables in the sidebar don't need that double border: use only one type of design for the sidebar elements
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    • Profile picture of the author steve39
      I like the 3-column. The content is nicely centered and the text lines are shorter, making for easier reading.
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  • Profile picture of the author RhondaGiarraffa
    Normally I would go for the two column. On this site however, for some reason, the 3 column just sits better. So Yep,,,I vote for 3.

    Rhonda
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  • Profile picture of the author MisterMunch
    I liked that the resource box was at the top of the article. Draws attention towards it.

    Another thing that I miss is a list of latest posts in that category. Helps you get some link juice for a longer period of time. Will help the page rank high for longer.

    An idea is to put 10 articles from the category after the article. And then let the list of articles be connected to that spesific article for the rest of your pages' life.

    Do this in a way that each article always will have 10 links from other relevant articles on this page. This way, no articles will get lost.
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    • Profile picture of the author Allen Graves
      Thanks everyone! I appreciate your honesty and detail.


      Originally Posted by MisterMunch View Post

      I liked that the resource box was at the top of the article. Draws attention towards it.

      Another thing that I miss is a list of latest posts in that category. Helps you get some link juice for a longer period of time. Will help the page rank high for longer.

      An idea is to put 10 articles from the category after the article. And then let the list of articles be connected to that spesific article for the rest of your pages' life.

      Do this in a way that each article always will have 10 links from other relevant articles on this page. This way, no articles will get lost.

      While this is technically a good idea for SEO, we choose other ways to rank highly.

      The purpose of the page is not to appease Google, but to get the visitor to the author's website.

      But thanks, you gave me a great idea for one of my affiliate sites!

      Allen
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      • Profile picture of the author achivement84
        I like the 2 columns page, it`s much easier to read and give you space for adding details and photos.It`s more comfortable to me.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mike Hill
    Three column all the way... that's my vote anyway!

    Mike Hill
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  • Profile picture of the author simba999
    I like the 2 column page, much cleaner..nice colors on that one too
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