When designing a website, it is oftentimes very easy to be caught up in everything you need to see on the website and completely forget about those individuals actually using the website. How can you make a better user experience without being too technical? Layered design and clean navigation. Reduce the clutter in the background. A bit of negative space can really go a long ways.
In website design, the most critical element is the user experience. Your target audience uses websites everyday. By designing for your target audience, you can ensure they have an enjoyable browsing experience. Do not allow yourself to become so far removed from your target audience that it becomes difficult to relate to them. The easier you can make it for your users to navigate and the more intuitive the process the better you will connect with them.
It is often said that ‘we are what we eat’. That is true when it comes to designing a website that will allow your target audience to engage with your brand. If your brand is not engaging with your target audience, then they will move on to another company with easier usability and user experience. With more consumers rely on mobile devices to access the Internet, you must remain current in your industry and remain competitive.
Website design and development companies should implement best practices branding guidelines into all of their projects. This includes everything from logo creation to email campaigns to even just the corporate website. With so much at stake, a designer or web developer must remain consistent and focused on the brand. Otherwise you risk losing potential customers.
The primary goal of a web designer or developer should be to design a website that optimizes your site for the search engines. A good approach begins by knowing your target audience. If your target audience is professionals then you want your content to be accessible and easy to navigate. Professional webmasters tools such as Majestic SEO ensure this occurs.
In addition to designing for the search engines, you also need to focus on engaging your target audience. In this case it is also helpful to have a strong brand personality. Whether it is a logo, color scheme or a simple slogan it is vital to make sure it is distinct and stands out from the competition. You also want it to be visible when people are searching for products or services using a search engine. To get these results, you will need to incorporate keywords in your content.
Designing a visually organized and easy to use website content becomes even more important when targeting mobile phone users. If your website content is cluttered and hard to read, then site visitors will perceive less credibility and trustworthiness. This will ultimately impact sales. With this in mind you want to balance text with images or video. With mobile devices becoming more popular and the mobile user experience becoming a key component of website design, visual hierarchy should be considered when designing for mobile devices.
Designing a website for a business can be a challenging and complex task. However, by keeping in mind these basic design tips you can increase traffic and improve conversions. With this in mind it is not difficult to fall short on your goals. However, with the right amount of planning and the use of mobile friendly design elements you can ensure that your web pages load quickly and without many glitches. Mobile friendly web design tips become even more important because every page will be viewed on a mobile device, if your pages are not mobile friendly it is virtually impossible to improve conversion rates.