Most of the time, making generalities about business web designs will get you in trouble. What works for an ecommerce site might not be a good idea for a small corner store, and the website for a bakery won’t necessarily have a lot in common with the one built by a B2B marketer.
However, we have noticed over the years that there are three distinct traits that all great web designs have in common. This is true regardless of location, industry, and business type. To put it another way, if your website doesn’t share these three traits, then there it’s probably quite a bit of work to do.
So, what are the three must-haves of web design that you need to pay attention to? Let’s take them in order…
1. Clean Lines and White Space
“Cluttered” is never a good luck. For one thing, it’s confusing to the human eye. And for another, it suggests that you don’t really know what your message is all about. On the contrary, it suggests that you are trying to overwhelm customers with ideas and might be trying to hide something from them.
That’s why great web designs always feature plenty of white space and a sleek look. Visitors can immediately identify major topics and components, and the whole setup is one of forethought and fluid organization. It can be tempting, as a marketer, to want to throw everything but the kitchen sink on your website. Resist the urge and stick with a clean layout buyers will understand.
Example of Good White Space:
2. Instant Comprehension Cues
This is a fancy way of saying that anyone who visits your website should understand who you are, what you have to offer, and why they should be interested within a couple of seconds or less. It means your big selling points and most compelling images are “above the fold” where they can easily be seen on a browser or mobile device.
Study after study has shown that you only get a few seconds to impress a new customer when they visit your website. If your pages don’t load quickly enough, or they can’t easily tell what it is you have to offer, that chance is going to disappear in a hurry.
Example of Instant Comprehension Cues:
3. An Intuitive Navigation Structure
No one likes digging through page after page of content to find the answers, products, or resources they are looking for. That’s especially true when using a mobile device which might require lots of finger tapping and waiting for pages to come online.
Often, when website conversion rates are low, the problem can be traced back to poor navigation structure. You might think people aren’t having any trouble finding what they’re looking for on your site. But if things seem confusing or disorganized to new visitors, they’ll never stick around to become regular customers.
Example of Intuitive Website Navigation:
Is Your Business Website Missing Something?
Usually, when a business website doesn’t have the traits we’ve outlined in this short article, it’s also the case that they are missing something else: bottom line business results. They aren’t generating search engine visits, walk-in traffic, new orders, or qualified leads.
So, whether you have the nagging feeling your web presence isn’t up to snuff or just want to see your business growing faster, consider this the wake-up call you need. Contact our team today to schedule a free consultation and see how we can help you take the next step forward!