Charles Heitz
The idea of a website is to give information to its visitors. Each site will have an aim, like sharing knowledge or asking people to do something, such as buy a product. There are over a billion live websites on the Internet these days, and each has a unique layout and style.
Do you have a website? If so, you might not realize this but its design can affect conversion rates. This blog entry will give you an insight into the importance of having a good website design. The following information will also be of use to people that might not have many visitors interacting with their site.
Readability
One of the things that put people off when they visit a site is a lack of readability. In a nutshell, if a visitor cannot read the content on a given page, they will go elsewhere. Once that person leaves your site, you’ve lost a potential customer or website subscriber.
The content on each page of your website needs to be easy to read, and easy to understand. Site owners often make the mistake of designing a website that appeals only to them, and not to their target audience.
You need to lay out your text in a way that is easy to digest for people from all walks of life. It should also get structured well and have no spelling or grammar mistakes. You shouldn’t make any assumptions about the type of visitor your site will attract. You must cater for all visitors that have an interest in your site’s content.
Device Compatibility
Many years ago, the only people to visit a website were those that used a computer. Nowadays, we can go online using smartphones and tablets. The classic mistake some folks make is assuming visitors will only use one type of system to access their sites.
Your website should have the ability to resize content automatically “on the fly.” But if visitors are using a small mobile phone screen, the content should get laid out differently so that it’s easy to read. After all; the last thing you want is for your visitors to zoom into your pages!
Structure
When you structure the pages on your site, it needs to make sense to all visitors. For instance, let’s say that you have a “Products” section. Underneath that heading, you might include a page on how people can buy those items. What you wouldn’t do is have a sub-page that discusses your company’s history! People need to navigate your site. If your site’s structure doesn’t seem logical, it will only confuse your visitors. And I can guarantee that most of those people will “give up” and go elsewhere.
Call To Action
You will undoubtably want some pages on your site to get your visitors to do something. The “thing” you use is called a call to action. It’s important that you get that call to action right.
For instance, on a product page you might have an obvious call to action where the visitor can add that product to their shopping cart. They can then buy it online. Another example might be if you want your visitor to call or email you.
You need to make your intentions clear to your visitors. And your call to action needs to be in an obvious place, such as near the top of the page or at the end of a few short paragraphs.
Wrap Up
These tips will help you to decide if your website is the best it can be for your visitors. There are many other factors to help determine conversion and likability but, the factors discussed here are the most common web design mistakes.
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