How important is website design? Well, a study found that 94% of negative website feedback was design related. Effective website design will impress your potential customers and encourage them to browse your products or services. A poorly designed website will harm your credibility and cost you customers. These 5 website design ideas are essential to thrive in the digital world.
1. Simplicity
Your customers want your information presented to them in an organized manner. Remember, white space is your friend. Try to distill your text into as few words as possible and make it concise. Use large headlines, bold subheadings, and bullet points so that your content can be easily scanned.
Be clear with your customers. Did you know 70% of small business websites do not have a Call to Action (CTA) on their homepage? Users want to see what you’re trying to sell them, and they want to know right away. If you don’t have distinct, visible ways for them to contact you, your customer isn’t going to take the time to scroll around to find it.
2. Accessibility
Users must be able to navigate flawlessly through your website. Think of your site as telling the story of your company. Errors in usability are like the storyteller stuttering, stopping, and being unclear. Make sure you have don’t have broken links or long loading times. Of internet users, 47% expect a maximum of 2 seconds for loading time on an average website. If long loading times are affecting the flow for the user, they will click ‘close’ in no time.
3. Consistency
Design components have to remain consistent throughout the pages of your website. Make sure fonts, sizes, and headline placement are the same from page to page. The same goes for image placement. Your CTAs will be more effective if they are all worded the same and have the same color, size, and button style. Consistency across page elements contributes to your company’s credibility and professional appeal.
4. Compatibility
Your website needs to be responsive, and that means it will adjust to any screen size. But you also need to have the elements that make for good mobile website design. If you don’t have a responsive website with features the user is looking for, there is a high chance they will go to your competitor’s website. To eliminate excess wording, try the “hamburger” menu — the three stacked lines in a top corner of your site. For truly good website design, you not only need to make sure your website is responsive but also that your mobile website is meeting the needs of your users.
5. Aesthetics
This element is arguably the most critical for good website design. You want unique fonts and memorable images that play into your brand and help build your brand recognition. Your color palette, imagery, and typography choices may seem minor, but they are all highly important to your website’s overall design. The images you choose get significant user attention, so choose them wisely and make sure they convey your business and brand. Try to get over the ‘cool’ factor of different web designs and choose palettes and designs that represent your company.
Combining these website design tips will help you create a beautiful, easy-to-use website. Most people are visual learners, so help them navigate through the information on your site through animations, photographs, or infographics while keeping in mind your website’s aesthetic, simplicity, and consistency.