Before we all learn something amazing, let me explain why “Sight” is in the title. Yes, “sight” not “site”. In this article, it’s about how “good web design” is often perceived wrong.
This is the first article of a 5 part series that will teach you the fundamentals to making a website WIN, and how you could be applying these really important fundamentals to your website. I wouldn’t want you wasting your time trying to learn something that is only going to confuse you.
I’ve put lots of thought into this series to make it as clear and understandable as I can. Let’s be real – you’re probably annoyed and confused when someone with “tech” experience that you’ve approached, preaches something so important about your website….but you have no clue what they’re talking about, nor does it get you a step closer to reaching your goals as a business owner.
Let me help the best I can.
I like to think a website is a bit like a human. No, no, I’m not trying to argue that a website is better than a human or is even similar. A human has many many important functions that we can use to understand websites, and those are all of our five senses – sight, touch, taste, hearing and smell. Today I’m going to be discussing sight.
Sight – When Websites meet the eye
In this article you’re going to learn why having a well designed website is something necessary for you to get your viewers to love your brand and business… but why isn’t it the only thing? I’m afraid to say, If you think “looks” is the only thing to make your website win, then actually you’re wrong.
Let me tell you why “good design” could make your business look awful or amazing.
1. First Impression Actually Matters When It Comes to “good web design”
I’m not here to tell you looks aren’t important – first Impressions do actually matter. Humans make first impressions of eachother in only a few seconds. Don’t you think it would be the same for someone visiting a website?
Think about it – have you ever visited a website and hit the back button straight away. This is most likely because the website just looked gross, confusing or you had no idea what they actually do as a business. Often businesses have an amazing product/service and an amazing vision to go with it… but anyone using the internet would perceive them differently.
How to make a good first impression you may ask? Here’s a great place to start
- Direct your audience to where you want them to see (think about sizing, placement and avoiding anything unnecessary on the website)
- Make a Unique Value Proposition (UVP) (let them know who you are and how you can benefit them as soon as they visit your website. This is so simple yet so effective)
- Use your own images
- Make an introductory video (people love this!)
- Design according to your audience (know your audience and research what they like and how you can appeal to them)
Don’t be that business that sells an awesome product/service, but has a crappy website – you’ll only be helping your competitors. To make money you need to add value. At least make it look like you’re adding value. Your website should have a better first impression than the back button on the corner of the screen…
2. Consider It ALL… Not Just Looks
Although your website should be visually appealing, don’t forget one of the main objectives to even have a website is to convert people that visit. Making your website look good is important but…good looks is only one strategy for conversion – don’t forget about the others.
Check out the image at the image below.
Conversion: when a website’s visitor completes the website’s desired action. This could be a social media share, filling out a form or making a purchase. (Just in case you don’t know what a conversion is).
There’s so much more to consider – user experience, clear communication, educating the audience and your website’s legitimacy (all shown in the image).
Whenever doing work on your website, ask yourself – is this going to be used to convert my website visitors. Remember your audience aren’t going to your website to admire an art work, they are there to find out more about you, what you sell and how they can benefit from it.
3. Design Based on Facts…Not Feelings
Sometimes it’s important to break the rules when designing a website. Take into account, It’s important to make call to actions (CTAs) very clear on your website. If it means to put boxes around CTAs, arrows pointing to CTAs and underlining…then do it (even if it looks a little bit ugly).
The point is – Just because something ‘feels right’ doesn’t mean it’s working.
Another specific example is that the colour of buttons (for instance a “buy now” button) on your website can increase the chance of people clicking it. According to Hubspot, a red CTA button generated 21% more clicks than the same button in green). It is important to remember that different colours evoke different meaning. This goes to show that although you have a style guide to stick to, it might be worth changing things up if you can. Find what works and do it.
Your Next Steps
Here are some things you have learnt and some key takeaways from this article:
- First impression matters – when someone enters your website it is important that they feel welcomed. If your website lacks a lot of visual design, often people will leave straight away.
- Consider It ALL…Not Just Looks – It’s easy for people to understand that first impression matters, but it is vital to remember the main objective for your website. One main objective for websites is converting those who view the website. Remember when designing your site, ‘looks’ is important, but isn’t everything. Think about user experience, clear communication, educating your audience and the legitimacy of your website.
- Design Based On Facts…Not Feelings – Sometimes it’s ok to break the fundamental rules of design if that means getting more people to convert. Do your research on how you can convert your specific audience, and know the facts.
Now it’s your turn to make the magic happen…whether that means doing all this yourself or having a chat to your web developer.
If you’re ready to level up your business with a new website project, we can help! Let’s solve!