It doesn’t matter if you’re selling children’s clothing, offering property maintenance services or running a catering company, your website is one of the most important parts of your business. It’s a place where everybody goes to find out more about your business, brand, what you are offering and purchase products, book an appointment or obtain a quote. If you are considering how to maximize your online presence, then delve into this article and discover the three factors that define a great website that’s going to deliver the results you strive for.
First of all, it’s important to understand why a website is important. It might sound like an odd and obvious subject but at its core, a website holds all of the information about a business along with all the products and services it sells. It is also a lot more than that, read through how a great website can help your own business.
A business without a website makes it hard for customers to find information regarding it. It will also cause customers to question the legitimacy; they may ask ‘What are they hiding? Why haven’t they invested in a website?’ A well-designed website will add this legitimacy to a business, offering reassurance to visitors and potential customers that it’s a real business that can be trusted.
A business website with clear information about its core values, why it operates and what it wants to achieve in the world will let people know exactly why they would pick them over the competition.
When people have a question, they head over to Google. By having a website, you’re going to increase your visibility, and in turn, improve your chances of establishing new customers, and again quality leads. When a business holds all of its information in one place (a well-thought-out website), it makes it easy for people to find all the information they need, get in touch and convert.
When people have questions, they turn to Google. By having a website, you can increase your visibility thereby improving your chances of finding new customers and quality leads. With all your information in one place, you make it easier for people to get in touch and convert.
Now we’ve considered why a website is so important, let’s look at 3 fundamentals to think about that will help you build a powerful website than unlocks the potential of your business's digital home.
When it comes to designing a website, the first thing to consider is the usability of it. UX design allows a designer to consider the layout, flow and structure of the website. Consideration needs to be made regarding how customers will move around and interact with the website and ensure their expectations are made. Part of the UX design process involves researching consumers' needs, what their pain points are and their desired goals.
UX design is a whole subject in itself that we would go into detail too much here today, in simplest terms you want to get your customers from start to finish in the easiest way possible. For an e-commerce website, a strong website will guide potential customers further down the sales funnel with ease and allow them to find all the information they require along the way.
Once the UX foundations are all in place, the website then needs to be engaging visually. It’s no secret that people are quick to make judgements based on visuals alone, with research showing us that it takes less than 1 second for people to form an opinion on a website. Various studies have also highlighted how different designs can affect credibility and influence the way visitors recall websites after a few seconds of exposure. Nailing the look and feel of a website is incredibly important.
In a brief statement, UI design covers all the visual elements of a website including global colour palettes, typography & fonts, imagery style, spacing and photography. Going into further detail it also includes interactive elements such as what happens when you tap a button and micro-interactions with the user.
Essentially, UX design covers the blueprint of a website while UI design is all about the look and feel, how the interface will behave and how visitors will interact with it. A UI designer is responsible for making sure everything looks great and keeps the user engaged whilst also keeping the design in line with the brand guidelines.
Hopefully, this article has offered you some insightful information and a few things to bear in mind when it comes to building a new website for you or your business. If you would like some help in creating a successful website, please get in touch.
Article Written by Matt Partridge
Web Developer & Digital Marketing Specialist
matt@madebyabstraction.com
