Do you have a website that looks great but still, the bounce rate doesn’t seem to get lower? Does your website have fast loading times but still not enough traffic?
While the visual appearance of your website is very important, it’s not the only aspect you should focus on.
Website design can make a huge difference when it comes to a company’s success. A poorly designed website means poor UX, which means that users won’t return.
So, whether you’re building a brand new website or revamping the old one, here are 7 essential elements you must include.
1. Mobile-Friendly Design
When it comes to online searching, mobile devices have come to the forefront. In fact, 80% of people are using their smartphones to access the Internet. In addition, mobile users tend to conduct purchases directly on their phones.
Not to mention, Google also favors mobile-friendly sites and ranks them higher in search results, which is another big plus.
When designing your website, think about how it will look and work on mobile devices. Having a website that is optimized for mobile will get you more traffic and improve brand engagement. To capture mobile users, focus on minimalist design, short headlines, and fast response times.
If you can afford it, you should also think about building a mobile app for your business. Mobile apps can help you make things more efficient, which will save you time and money in the long run.
2. A Great Home Page
Your website visitors need only a few seconds to decide whether they’re going to stay on your website or leave. And they make this decision based on your homepage.
When creating your homepage, focus on high-quality imagery, easy navigation, as well as concise content and headlines. Even better, instead of using images, consider striking visuals like videos, animation, or illustration to instantly showcase your products or services.
Strategic placement of Calls-to-Action on your homepage can also be a significant factor for boosting conversions. So, instead of placing your CTA at the bottom of your homepage, keep it above the fold. Make sure your calls-to-action are in contrasting colors in order to be clearly visible.
3. Build a Blog
A company’s blog content is the focal point of any effective inbound marketing strategy. By creating high-quality content that adds value to your website visitors, you establish yourself as an industry expert and it helps you stand out from the crowd.
Make sure to make it easy for visitors to sign up for blog updates, and include social media share buttons to allow them to share your content easily.
While at the task of creating your blog, make sure to optimize your posts for SEO. This includes using selected keywords, adding internal and external links, etc. At the end of each blog post, add a call-to-action that is relevant to the blog topic to boost conversions.
Consistency is key, so make sure to publish new content frequently. In times of creative crisis, you can always update and repurpose old content.
4. Pay Attention to Landing Pages
When visitors click on a call-to-action, they should be taken to a landing page that contains more information about the offer. Keep it short and concise but intriguing enough to make the visitors fill out a form.
Your contact form should also be short and clear. Ask only for the information that is absolutely necessary. The visitor’s name and email should suffice. If you’re asking for too many details in exchange for the content you’re offering, potential contacts will find it not worth the effort and leave. However, if you’re offering a comprehensive e-book, you can ask for more information as its value is perceived as higher.
When creating a landing page, make sure the focus is on the offer’s value. Get rid of any kind of distractions such as links or social icons. Finally, don’t forget to include your target keywords and optimize your landing page for SEO.
5. Clear and Efficient Contact Page
Today’s customers are somewhat spoiled and expect you to assist or support them 24/7. If there’s no way they can reach you, they’ll take their business elsewhere. That’s why you need to have a contact page. Include your email, business phone number, and physical address (if you have one). Besides providing fast-lane access for users, these details will also add legitimacy to your business.
6. Visual Appearance
At the beginning of this post, we mentioned that visual appearance isn’t everything. Yes, a visually appealing site that is dysfunctional serves for nothing. But having a highly-functional website that looks crappy won’t get you far either.
One of the most important elements of good website design is attractive fonts. This counts for both the mobile and the desktop version of the website. Your fonts should be good-looking, but you should also make sure they’re clean and easy to read. Don’t forget about the fonts’ size as well. For easy reading, use a font size of about 16px. Finally, use up to three font faces to make the design appear organized and clean.
Colors are another factor you should consider when designing your website. A carefully chosen color scheme can contribute to a better UX. Make sure not to go overboard with colors because you might end up distracting your visitors. Most designers usually use two colors – one for the background and the other as an accent color. Alternatively, you can use different shades of one color for a more modern feel of your design. Don’t forget about whitespace as it creates breathing room for the whole design layout.
7. Create a Community
If you want your site to become a place people want to come back on a regular basis, then you should focus on building a community around it. This is not an easy task, but you can achieve it by creating a forum for your site with a WordPress forum theme.
A forum can create an online community that not only actively engages with your website’s content but also allows users to interact with each other. This, in turn, will make it easier for you to achieve your website goals.
Final Thoughts
Thanks to technology, today even small businesses can have a functional, user-friendly, and visually-compelling websites and engage with potential customers.
By applying these website design elements, you’ll be able to cater to your visitors’ needs. And improving the UX will result in various benefits for your business, such as increased traffic and lead generation.