Recently, my daughter’s been going through a phase where she likes to fix things around the house.
If something comes loose or falls off, she tends to reach for this little toolbox she has, without even checking if it’s something that can be fixed with a nail and hammer.
Now that she’s becoming better at it, she’s started asking me for more advanced tools. Recently, on the search for a specific kind of Torx screwdriver, I came across two sites with the same-day delivery option (I was trying to surprise her once she got back from school).
The first site I visited was, for lack of a better word, a disaster.
Not only was the site designed so badly that I wanted to reach out and give them a hand, but there was no real contact information or even a space for product and delivery FAQs. Some of the buttons didn’t work and neither did the forms.
Naturally, there was no way I was going buy this all-important Torx screwdriver from there.
The second site, as you may have guessed it, was the polar opposite. Clean graphics, a consistent colour scheme, functioning forms and buttons, and decent content. There was even a tracker that helped me track my Torx screwdriver as it weaved through Sydney before arriving at my doorstep.
My point, here, is that if you’re an e-commerce company or even just one that has an online presence, your website is bound to be the cornerstone of your business.
It needs to be powerful, interactive, intuitive and beautifully designed. People, today, are discerning and can sniff out quality and effort when it comes to the businesses they interact with. If you don’t put your heart into your website, that’s going to send a very telling message to your audience.
In this post, I’m going to do a quick dive into five website designs tips you need to ensure are addressed on your site, regardless of what you do.
1. Less is more (no, really)
It’s totally normal to feel like the more videos, carousels, sliders, GIFs and other elements you add to your site, the more memorable it is.
That said, you also run the risk of slowing your site down and making the user journey a visually exhausting one.
Based on my experience working with international clients, I’ve always found that it’s the simple and sleek designs that are successful and those that tend to perform better in terms of metrics like the length of time users spend on your website.
2. Add the human touch to your website
People are pros when it comes to detecting stock images and certainly won’t connect if you haven’t taken the time to do the same.
Make the effort of using high-quality photos of your teams and customers, where possible, to pepper you site with the human connection many of us are missing during this unprecedented pandemic. Images always boost engagement on predominantly text-based sites.
3. Don’t overwhelm your visitors with too many options
Another aspect of your site where the “less is more” mantra applies is when you’re giving your users too many options.
Call us, book a demo, download this guide, test ride our product and other CTAs can drive your users up the walls (and away from you).
If your primary push is to schedule a demo, for instance, tailor your content around that one request.
4. Design your site with the mobile experience in mind
With mobile traffic accounting for 52.6% of global web traffic, it’s clear that the mobile experience of your website needs to be just as sleek and smooth as the desktop version.
Here, speed and simplicity are key. Make sure people have options to get in touch with you and perform other critical actions like buy, subscribe, enquire, or make a request without having to scroll too much or look too hard.
5. Keep your ideal user in mind when you’re designing your site
In the design process, we often get waylaid by what we think is a great and intuitive website design.
One of the most important website design tips I can share with you is that you keep your audience in mind, regardless of whether you’re building your site from scratch or giving it a facelift. Ask yourself what their interests, concerns, challenges, and values are.
After building a persona for your business, build your website around that, and one that’s in line with industry-leading website design tips.
Launch a powerful website backed by the right website design tips
Designing a website that’s great to look at and influences your customers to do exactly what you want them to—like the Apple website for me—comes down to knowing what the best practices are.
At WebGeek, executing website design tips and tricks to create sleek and powerful websites is our bread and butter. Explore our range of website services to find out how we can support your website design work.