Chris Pentago — August 21, 2019 — August 21, 2019
Most businesses understand the importance of having a website in 2019. Strangely, a number of these same businesses don’t appreciate the need to carefully optimize their design.
Business owners often skimp on the aesthetics and functionality of their website. They seem to believe that customers will happily engage with them, as long as the website exists. A number of consumer polls strongly dispute this misconception.
A Stellar Website Design is Essential to Building Trust
There are a number of things to keep in mind for companies that need a web design. Blue Corona published a blog post about the importance of having a high-quality website design. They cited a number of compelling statistics from various polls. However, one statistic, in particular, stands out.
The poll in question found that 48% of customers view the overall appearance of a company‘s website as the number one indicator of its credibility. Companies that don’t have high-quality websites risk losing market share and customer trust.
What Website Factors Come Into Play When Assessing the Quality and Credibility of a Web Design?
Customer research clearly shows that people prefer functional websites with quality designs. However, this conclusion might seem useless, since determining the quality of the website is subjective. Fortunately, there are a number of helpful guidelines that you can use as a starting point.
Make mobile optimization a top priority
Mobile devices are permanently changing online consumer behavior. Mobile website traffic surpassed desktop Internet usage for the first time in 2016. The proportion of Internet traffic coming from mobile devices has been rising steadily, which makes mobile websites more important than ever.
Developing a website that is optimized for mobile traffic is absolutely crucial. One poll found that 40% of customers will go to a different site if they encounter a website that has a poor mobile experience.
Get input from your target customers on color schemes and other design criteria
As stated earlier, ranking the quality of a website is subjective. The last thing that you want to do is lull yourself into a false sense of security by getting input from the wrong people.
My web design colleagues back in California repeatedly talked about how frustrating it was to listen to clients giving a very biased perspective. They said that one of the biggest issues was that clients told them that their daughter or college roommate said the design was good. They seem to believe that anecdotal opinions from random people were all that mattered.
The harsh reality is that the only opinions that matter are those of your customers. You don’t necessarily need to send an email out to your existing customers asking for input. However, you should at least find a reasonable sample of people in their demographic to give their feedback.
Don’t overdo the visual elements
You need to be careful about cramming too many visual elements into your website. More is not always better. A ton of flashy images can create a number of problems:
- Your website might take longer to load.
- The site can hurt readers’ eyes because it will look too cramped.
- Visitors will have a hard time navigating your site and finding your calls to action.
Some visual elements can add to your site. However, they need to be used in moderation.
Your Business’s Credibility is on the Line with a Low-Quality Website
You can’t afford to use a low-quality website to engage with your customers. You need to make coming up with a great design a top priority. Fortunately, you will be on the right track if you follow the tips listed above.
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