Website design is a bit like a menu for a special dinner, a bit of planning and thought goes a long way.
There’s lots of competition out there, that’s not news. However, there are some key pointers not to forget when designing a new website or reviewing the one you already have. It’s often useful to ask a business colleague to rate the site’s useability.
Usability is a digital buzz word that means how visitors interact with your site, can they find what they are looking for, your key services or products etc…
It’s important to think of your users first, rather than straight SEO as search engines use algorithms that look for relevant content first.
Navigation
When we say navigation, the first meaning is your navigation bar across the top of your site, possibly with second and third level pages leading on. Most users will use the navigation bar to find what they are looking for – make sure your key services or products are top line, also Contact and if you have it, blog or news. Something TPG are keen on, is a good breadcrumb trail, enabling visitors to see how they have arrived at the page from the main menu. A clear breadcrumb trail means it’s easy to back track and revisit pages you’ve seen.
Navigation has a more complex, but just as important second meaning. Navigation also includes your sales process. Are visitors neatly led to calls to action, sales pages or your current offer page? In terms of your sales process, it’s also important to have a thank you page after a visitor has filled in a contact form or downloaded a document.
Don’t Waste Time
If you’ve done your buyer persona research (first step to content production), you’ll be attracting the right visitors to your website. These valuable visitors still have a short attention span and don’t waste their time by too many pop ups, difficult to find information or contact details.
It maybe that visitors are looking to call you and an interactive phone number on the home page will make it easy for them to click and call from a mobile phone. A full Google or Bing Business profile will also be beneficial for quick to find contact details.
Don’t Leave Visitors Dangling
Have you ever filled in a website contact form and felt unsure if you’ll get a response? I know I have and unfortunately been proven right! To help ease those feelings, a thank you page, or submission receipt is a great idea. A time frame can also be added, for example “A team member will be in touch within 24 hours”, you could also add a small amount of relevant content to direct them to your blog, or, if you have an active social media presence, your favoured channel.
We like to feel wanted and looked after, so make sure your website gives off a warm glow.
TPG Design make useability a top criteria for our website and can be an evolving process as you find out how visitors use your website, you advertise offers, have new products or services or a new blog for example. That’s the beauty of a website over printed material, it can all be changed and evolve as you do – there aren’t a pile of boxes with out of date sales material, sitting guiltily in the corner…
