Almost every business has a website. It is essential for businesses that offer their products and services without a brick-and-mortar location. Just like a physical store needs to look appealing and create an atmosphere of comfort for customers, an online location needs certain design features that help a website visitor become comfortable with the company and products.
A website is fairly easy to build with the various content management systems (CMS) available. The DIY website is achievable for people of any technical skill and with any budget. WordPress is one of the most popular CMSs and is also a favorite of website designers with its open-source coding to completely customize a website yet allow for an intuitive interface for the less technologically minded to use.
Yet, even with easy access to software that makes the building simple, a website still needs thoughtful consideration of how to design the layout and what important elements to include. HubSpot’s article will provide you with data from a survey they did to uncover what elements visitors are looking for when they go to a website. The best design of a site is somewhat dependent on the industry, but there are some general concepts to keep in mind that are relatable to every business.
Design Considerations to Turn Visitors into Customers
- Whether you have an e-commerce site or are using your site to display business and product information, your home page should have a clear call to action (CTA) that encourages visitors to navigate the different parts of your site.
- Use colors on your site that are complementary and not too bold. Even if you are a bold and “colorful” business, you want to appeal to a variety of potential customers, and it’s always better to err on the side of less color than too much.
- Search Engine Optimization is important and should be integrated into your site in various ways, but your focus for the text and media should be with what your target market wants to see, not the search engines.
- Headers and footers should have CTAs, contact information (or one click to see contact information), your branding, your social media links, and anything else that you want a visitor to know about your company no matter what page they happen to visit first.
- Your site must be easy to navigate with any device size. You will lose a significant amount of visitors if your site is not mobile-friendly.
You could have the most intriguing and engaging ad that draws visitors to your site, but if you have a website that isn’t designed to engage and appeal to potential customers, then you have wasted your advertising dollars.
Your online location should be as welcoming and accommodating as a physical store. How inviting is your storefront (home page)? Can customers easily find what they are looking for (through menus and sidebars)? Is it easy to talk to someone (phone/email/chat) and learn more about the business?
Have you included videos on your site? Video is a great way to connect with your visitors and tell your brand story. Read our article on low-budget video-marketing strategies and take advantage of this personal-touch approach to building relationships with your audience.
Take the time and get the appropriate advice to give your visitors the best user experience on your site.
Receive individual attention that will help you reach the segment of the homeschooling market that is right for your business by contacting us for personal help with your advertising needs.
