Tips and Tricks for a Great Website Design Your Customers Will Love
Have you ever been on a badly designed website? The chances are that you didn’t stick around for long if you could help it. You might have found it ugly or difficult to read and navigate. The website might have been slow and clunky, making it frustrating to do anything.
If you were on an online shop, you might have found that the product descriptions were lacking and without any decent pictures, meaning you had no idea what you were supposed to be buying. Finally, if you did want to buy something, the checkout system might have been so antiquated and complicated that you were practically waiting for a pigeon to send your bill.
These are not signs of great website design. But it’s a great way to look at why it’s so important to have a well-designed website. This article will provide you with a few tips to help you get there.
Building the Website
Building a website is easier now than ever before. There’s a reason business websites used to be relegated to larger companies that could afford the time and effort it took to build them. But now business websites are recommended for companies of all sizes, even small local businesses and sole traders.
If you are a skilled website designer and developer, you still have the option of designing and building the website yourself. This is the cheapest option and the option that allows you the most control over the website. It’s also a good endorsement of your skills if you happen to work in the website building industry.
However, building a website is hard and takes skill and time alike. If you don’t know what you’re doing, you can end up with an insecure, buggy mess.
So, look into other options. You could hire someone with these skills to build the website for you. You still get a fully customized website, but it will come with a hefty price tag. The final option is to use a website builder complete with templates.
A website builder like squarespace is designed with business owners in mind. You can create an attractive, functional website, and have it hosted for you. The main downside is that you have limited control over the website design itself. However, these businesses offer a lot of templates and different deals depending on what you want and need.
Navigation
The navigation system is what makes your website functional. A drop-down menu is a classic option for a reason. It works and people are familiar with it. Make sure that it’s obvious what’s in which category. It’s also a good idea to include a search bar, so people can get where they want as quickly as possible.
Functionality is the most important thing about your website. It needs to be easy to use and convenient. While appearance also matters, it comes second.
Fonts and Colors
On a similar note, you might find a beautiful font that matches your brand. But is it easy to read? Heavy cursive might look nice, but if people are forced to work to understand what’s on the page, they won’t appreciate it.
The same applies to your colors. Find a balance between something that is pretty, easy to read, and that stands out. Bright and garish colors might be memorable, but they won’t be attractive or easy to read. Lots of pastels might look nice, but the letters might not be distinguishable from the background.
Testing
Always test your website to make sure it works. Just like any other business tool, your website is a vital part of the smooth running of your business. You’d maintain other tools and equipment and make sure they’re working properly.
The same applies to your website.
Run quick tests before you go live. Regularly keep up with maintenance and update your website. Something that was cutting edge five years ago is going to be far behind the times now.
Keep up to date with your blogs and make sure any information on your website is current and correct.
An Online Store
If you use your website as an online store, it needs to work well. Products should be easy to find and well described, ideally with photographs and even videos to show how they work. Include reviews and testimonials.
Make it easy for customers to buy your products by using a trusted payment gateway provider to streamline the checkout process and reduce the risk of abandoned shopping carts.
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