It’s pretty much agreed the internet is the greatest invention ever. Online companies will certainly nod their head in agreement, as it’s created the opportunity for them to showcase their products and services to a new range of consumers.
In an age in which, just by tapping their phone a few times, consumers can order a wide range of products and services and never have to set foot out of their homes, a website is a must-have for businesses. Having a website isn’t enough, however: It must be a good, well-designed website if it’s to support your business efforts suitably. Below is a look at the importance of good design when it comes to your business website, plus examples of brands whose websites are smashing it out of the park when it comes to this.
A good website creates a good first impression
Your potential new customer doesn’t want to be greeted with a dreary, dated-looking website when they land on it. They’ll just click away and find what they want with one of your competitors because your website isn’t appealing. Whereas good design will help to keep them interested in what you have to offer and in learning about your business.
Apple, renowned for its innovation, is one example of a company whose website creates a good impression. As a company at the forefront of technology, the design of the website supports this reputation with a sharp but simple design that showcases new products.
A website with easy navigation can lead to a sale
No website user wants to struggle to find information. A good design can help them navigate the site with much less difficulty and find what they want quickly. Remember, consumers have short attention spans and can be impatient. They’re more than happy to buy from someone else if they can’t achieve what they want on your website.
One example of a site that’s easy to navigate is that of 888, an online casino in the United Kingdom. If anyone understands the importance of good web design, online casino operators do. In this highly-competitive industry, good design is essential to engage users. Operators offer a wide variety of games and the players, who are eager to get on with their gaming, want to access them and the operator’s other services without any issues.
Good website design can improve your visibility online
Certain elements of design will influence how you publish the content on your website. In turn, these elements affect how search engine spiders crawl your website and index it. It’s important to get the search engine optimisation (SEO) fundamentals right from the get-go. Otherwise, you’ll struggle to achieve visibility in the search engines — and if no one can find you, you’re missing out on potential sales. Working with a web design company that understands SEO will help you to build a website that has a fighting chance of performing well in search engines.
Zappos is one company that has thought a lot about its website optimisation. The design is clean and elegant. The website is user-friendly. The text incorporates lots of relevant terms and queries that search engine users will be typing in while looking for shoes or other clothing, so that the site appears for lots of different search queries.
Your website design suggests your level of customer care
When people look at your website, they’re likely to judge how well you treat them. If your website doesn’t look as if you’ve put much effort into the design, your potential customers will think you’re also not likely to be very helpful to them. An appealing website will make your business feel more approachable, whereas a dated one will convey the impression your business is cold and distant.
The Netflix website creates a positive impression of how it treats its customers. The search function is easy to find, as is the Help Centre, which offers advice on different aspects of using Netflix. If you still can’t find what you need, you can get in touch via the Help Centre by calling the company or starting a Live Chat, both buttons of which are clearly visible to go about it.
Design creates consistency
As you generate leads for your business, you’re also trying to build your brand. Your audience is still trying to get to know your brand and your website design will aid this by creating consistency across the pages. A different design on every page — different fonts, different colours, different layouts —will merely confuse your audience and make it harder for them to recognise you. It also looks unprofessional.
This is much different to a consistent design. When your website design is consistent, you can keep leads on your page for longer and help them become more familiar with your brand.
The air travel company JetBlue implements a simple colour scheme across the websites that makes it very clear who the brand is. The use of white is also important as there is plenty of white space, allowing the website to ‘breathe’ better, rather than have lots of elements crammed on the pages and all battling against each other for the user’s attention.
Solid web design is crucial for a business website. Whereas bad design can put potential customers off spending money with you, good design will engage them, make them want to learn more about your brand and, ideally, buy what you have to offer.
