As you look into redesigning your website or even creating a new website for your business, it can be challenging to know which areas to focus on, given the choice of options available.
The truth is, good web design is an holistic thing. You need to be able to please both your audience and Google, while also ensuring that all of your business information is portrayed in a coherant, attractive way.
That’s why it’s always a good idea to invest in the help of web design experts – they understand the importance of good web design, and know exactly how to deliver it.
These days you can create a website from templates in a few hours or work with an agency to guide you through the process. We take you through five reasons why web design is important, and what to consider at each stage!
1. First impressions MATTER
Think of your website homepage as the front page of a newspaper. It needs to be enticing, it needs to draw people in, and it needs to encourage people to delve deeper into your business and its services.
Your website is also the first impression people recieve of your company, so it’s imperative that it’s a good one. Incorporate your branding, and make sure you tell your potential customers what you stand for. They will judge you within seconds, and once they’ve clicked the back button, that’s their business gone for good.
If your website looks outdated, is slow to load, or doesn’t have a cohesive user experience (UX) that makes it easy for your audience to find the information they need, your users will make assumptions about your business before they have even made contact.
TIP: make sure your website – and in particular – your homepage quickly tells people what your business does and reassures visitors that they are in the right place to meet their need at that moment. Google will reward you for it and your visitors will stick around and explore further.
2. Your SEO strategy will love you for it
The most effective SEO strategy starts at the beginning. Web designers will be able to factor in both off-page and on-page elements that can have an impact on your site’s visability to Google when they build your website.
For example, Google factors in multi-media page elements in its ranking algorithm, while there also needs to be the option to add relevant tags and coding elements to your pages to maximise their visibility.
Well-structured and optimised code combined with an SEO strategy that encompasses frequently published, good quality content can affect how search engine spiders crawl and index your website. If your website is well built and kept up to date, you won’t need to fight as hard for visibility.
TIP: It’s important to ensure your coding is SEO-friendly. If you’re looking to ensure proper web design practices and subsequent search engine visibility, get in touch with us today.
3. Build trust
We are, quite rightly, brought up to not judge a book by its cover, but it is important to know that people WILL subconsciously make judgements about your business by how your website is designed. If they feel your website is poorly designed, they may question your reputability.
By creating a clean, intuitive user experience that allows your potential customers to filter down the sales funnel, you gain their trust with every step, which equals that all important sale. Combine fabulous web design with punchy, accurate, and audience-specific copy, and you have a sure-fire recipe for success.
TIP: A professional-looking site is one of the biggest trust signals, and means your audience will feel comfortable to continue their journey with you. The longer your visitors remain on your site, the more chance you have to capture those leads.
4. Consistency is key
When you’re looking for new leads, you need to build up your brand! You want your audience to instantly recognise you across a range of platforms, with your website at the forefront.
Just think, you’ve invested time and money on a snazzy marketing campaign, but when the natural action for an interested party is to head over to your website to find out more, you need it to draw them in further, rather than feed doubts into their mind.
TIP: From fonts to layouts across each page, ensure your site is consistent which will improve your brand recognition. If you’re looking for a consistently designed website to build brand recognition, get in touch.
5. The competition will continue to grow
We’ve left the biggest reason for why web design is important until last. Your competitors will be and are already utilising good web design!
To remain competitive, you must ensure your website is up to scratch. Covid-19 has had a huge impact on consumer behaviour, with more people shopping, accessing services and booking appointments online.
You need to make sure you transition your business to the new e-commerce reality.
TIP: You’re going to want your website to stand out amongst the competition. If you have an old, slow or a low-quality site, your competitors will likely outrank you in search results, meaning you’ll be losing out on those precious leads.