It is impossible to have a great website without great web design. Web design lays the groundwork to make sure your website gets the care it needs and works the way it should. It helps visitors to get to the pages they want to go and find the information they need. In the end, web design is how a website is able to get more sales, increase brand visibility, and grow the business.
To put it simply, your website needs good web design to draw more visitors in. Read on to understand how web design affects your business.
Web design creates a special user experience
If you have a website and/or an app, you probably know about User Experience Design (UX) and User Interface Design (UI). These two things are related, but not the same. They guide the web design process as the tools used to produce a professional website that is easy to maneuver.
UX and UI work hand in hand, leading to a site that is able to connect with your market. To put it plainly, UI refers to visual elements – graphic design, colors, etc. UX, on the other hand, is more about the functionality of the site and the ease with which a user can navigate through it.
UX designers concentrate on the usability of the website – the menu, links, button locations, shopping cart, and other elements that affect how easily a user is able to get through it. UI designers compliment the functionality by making it attractive to the eyes, taking into consideration where their customer’s eyes should be drawn to and who their target market is. For example, a website selling antique furniture to collectors would need to have very different visual design than a site with children’s educational games.
Making UX and UI a part of your design strategy is how you will be able to develop a website that will draw the right customers in and influence them to make a purchase.
How can I make a great first impression?
Although all parts of your website is important, you should pay special attention to the homepage. Users typically draw conclusions about your entire site, and therefore your business, based on the homepage. Most of your web design efforts should be focused here, because this will be the first impression someone has of your online presence.
If a visitor doesn’t like the first page of your site, it is very likely that they will close your page. They may even spread the news that their experience with your online presence was less than adequate. Other people will then be less inclined to visit your website.
First impressions do count, so make the best of it by ensuring that your homepage is attractive and functional at first glance.
At this point, you may have decided that it’s about time for you to improve your website. If so, here are a couple pieces of advice on where to begin.
- Be clear about your business – what you do, what you sell, and how you can help them get what they want. Integrate your branding and make sure your logo and other important elements are visible at first glance. Make sure you can communicate what you can offer to your customers. If they don’t know what you can provide, why would they stay on your site?
- Be aware of your voice. The way you would address a target market of business people about mutual funds would be very different from how you would talk to expecting mothers about prenatal vitamins. Ensure that the tone of voice in your content is in line with your target market.
- Eliminate unnecessary marketing. Some websites try to put copious amounts of content on their homepages. Images, reviews, links, and content are scattered about the page, all demanding for attention. It is likely to alienate the visitor, and they will soon leave the page. Be clear and concise about what you offer.
- Encourage action at the right time. There is a time and place to encourage visitors to take action to purchase our product, sign up for your service, or explore sales. Use it tastefully and strategically, and avoid being excessive.
- Ensure responsiveness. In this day and age, there are a variety of devices that people use to browse the web. Make sure you can cater to people across different devices by integrating responsive web design so that people on mobile devices can be just as impressed by your site as those on laptops.
At Digital Bravado, we specialize in website design for small businesses – get in touch today to see how we can help.
