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Did you know that 38 percent of internet users will stop engaging with a website altogether if they find the layout to be unattractive?
That means if your website design is subpar, you could be losing more than a third of your potential customers!
Nobody wants to have a poorly designed website, but not all business owners are equally skilled in the fundamentals of web design, either.
If you’re brand new to the design world and have no idea where to begin, keep reading. Listed below are some basic web design tips every business owner ought to know.
Table of Contents
Focus on Site Speed
The loading speed of your website ought to be priority number one when you start thinking about ways to enhance your design.
The faster a website loads, the more likely people are to actually stick around and see what your business has to offer.
Folks have short attention spans these days, and nobody wants to wait for more than a second or two to check out a website.
Keep Important Information “Above the Fold”
There’s some controversy surrounding this tip. Some folks say it’s not necessary to keep important information high up on the page, but others disagree.
The results of this study show that the fold does still matter. It showed that internet users spent 57 percent of their time focusing on the information above the fold and only 17 percent on the second screen.
Reduce Decision Fatigue
You might think you’re doing visitors a favor by offering them dozens of choices. You could actually be driving them away, though.
The more choices people have, the more likely they are to experience “decision fatigue” and make no choice at all.
It’s fine to give people options, but don’t offer them so many that they become overwhelmed.
Keep Things Simple
It’s also a good idea to keep the layout of your website as simple as possible.
Don’t overwhelm your visitors with tons of pictures or animations. Give them a clear path to follow and make it easy for them to find what you want them to find.
Avoid Stock Photos
Stock photos might look nice to you, but they’re a major turnoff to internet users.
People can usually tell pretty quickly whether an image is real or a stock photo, and they won’t be impressed if it’s the latter.
Folks are all about authenticity these days; they want to see photos of you, your employees, and your customers, not photos of random people.
Leverage Social Proof
Social proof (such as positive reviews and testimonials) is a powerful tool for business owners.
If you can show new visitors that other people already have a positive view of your business, you’re going to have an easier time converting them.
Limit Your Font Variety
There is definitely such a thing as too many fonts.
If you use too many different fonts on your site, people are going to have trouble focusing. This will also make your site look messy and disorganized.
Limit yourself to just a couple of different fonts (no more than three) for a clean and polished look.
Make Mobile-Friendliness a Priority
More than half of all online searches take place via smartphones and other mobile devices. If your website isn’t mobile responsive and is hard to access and navigate via these devices, you’re going to lose out on a lot of potential conversions.
Focus on Navigation
Your site ought to be easy to navigate, too.
People should be able to find their way around to locate information on your products or services or make a purchase.
Use clear headers and contrasting colors to simplify the process and point people in the right direction.
Make Social Sharing and Following Easy
If users can easily share your content and information about your website on social media, they’ll be more likely to spread the word about what you have to offer.
The key is to include social sharing buttons and make sure they’re located in a prominent location. Make it easy for people to follow your social media profiles, too.
Add Calls to Action
A clear call-to-action is crucial if you want people to take the next step when engaging with your website. A well-placed CTA can help turn people from casual visitors to paying customers.
Make Content Easily Readable
People need to be able to read the content on your website. Otherwise, it doesn’t matter how much time you spent writing it.
Use contrasting colors to make the text more visible, and make sure it’s large enough for folks to see, especially when they’re reading from a mobile device.
Enhance Your SEO Strategy
It’s not enough just to have a fast-loading, eye-catching website. People also need to be able to find it.
A great search engine optimization (SEO) strategy is crucial for business owners who want to be found online.
Many web design experts also offer SEO services that can improve your rankings and help you get your website in front of more people.
Don’t Be Afraid of White Space
Some folks think they need to fill every inch of their screen with images or text. That’s not the case, though.
White space is a powerful tool that helps your website look clean and streamlined. It also makes it easier for users to find what you want them to find.
Always Be Testing
Finally, make sure you’re always testing your website.
Test the speed, the mobile responsiveness, and the effectiveness of your current layout.
You can even set up A/B testing and heat maps to get more detailed information on what users like and don’t like.
Need More Web Design Tips?
As you can see, there are a lot of web design tips you can implement to improve the appearance of your website and increase your conversions.
What if you don’t have time to redesign your website yourself, though? This is where I come in.
I offer a wide range of website design services to help you make sure your website stands out from your competition. I also offer SEO, logo design, and web hosting services for businesses in the Savannah area and throughout the U.S.
Contact me today to learn more or to start taking your website design to the next level!
