You only get one chance to make a first impression, so you must put in as much effort as possible to stand out immediately. Your website is like a storefront that represents your business. Often, it is the first contact with a potential customer. But how do you get to a functional and tasteful website?
In today’s modern age of convenience, it is not at all difficult to create a website. However, building a quality website is a bit more complex, so you should pay enough attention to its creation. Often, small details that complete a harmonious whole decide, which should not be forgotten.
After just 5 to 15 seconds, people decide whether to stay on your website or give preference to the competition. The first impression is decisive. Here are 5 tips to help you build a website that will stand out and represent your company well.
1. Competition monitoring
At the beginning of creating a website, you should define how you envision it to look and what you do not want it to contain. This step will certainly help you to make an overview of the competition. Next, check out their websites and choose what you like most.
Monitoring is beneficial not only in discovering elements that you want to apply but also in revealing weaknesses that you can avoid from the outset. Pay attention to every detail, from the domain name, content, text, photos, and colours to the structure. From the fragments that interest you the most, assemble your dream visual style for the website. At the same time, this information will help you not create duplicate pages similar to your competition.
2. Keyword analysis
Potential customers can access your website in several ways. One of them is searching engines such as Google, Bing or Yahoo! using keywords.
Think about what word combinations are closely related to your website. Then, ask other impartial people how they would search for your products. Sometimes the words and word combinations that people can use to find what they are looking for can surprise even experienced SEO “fighters”. Therefore, the survey should be thorough, revealing even less likely searches.
Keyword analysis of the words visitors search for is crucial to preventing your website from being lost in an endless list and being just one of many others. After all, everyone wants their website to be in the top positions in the search engine.
3. Mobile display and speed
It’s certainly true that mobile phones have taken control of the digital world. Most people visit websites on smartphones, so focusing on flawless displays on these devices is very important. If a website does not display correctly and quickly enough for a visitor, they will likely go to the competition. The subsequent departure of customers from the website also affects its ranking in search results.
As mentioned, loading speed is decisive. Avoid unnecessarily large images that take too long to display. A good tip is to optimize them to the same size on the entire website. This looks more attractive overall and contributes to a better design.
4. Website clarity
Regardless of the changing trends in web design, one rule remains unchanged – logical and intuitive hierarchy. The customer must be able to navigate the website easily. Upon arrival, you have too little time to convey the information they are looking for. Designers often follow the three-click rule. This means that the navigation on the website must be so simple that a person can reach the desired item within three clicks. Not only the main navigation bar but also the overall layout of the website should be transparent.
Imagine that an unknown person comes to your website. Can they find information without reading every word? Visitors scan rather than read websites. They quickly browse the website and pay attention to what interests them. Therefore, headings must be sufficiently descriptive, and the most important information must be highlighted in bold. Images also play an essential role. They should not only be illustrative but also have a descriptive value.
5. Less is more
The overused phrase “less is more” may sometimes seem like a cliché to you. But even when creating a functional website, you can’t do without it. This idea is applied repeatedly, from marketing strategy to company logo.
A design-attractive website does not mean filling it with images, animations or sliders. On the contrary, these elements can often be more harmful and must be let go so that only the essential elements remain on the site.
Here we come back to the previous point. The simplicity of the website also ensures better clarity and navigation. Of course, visitors want to find information or shop on the site as quickly as possible. But, on the other hand, you want them to stay on your site and do as many actions as possible. Therefore, the content you offer must immediately catch the eye. But, of course, good content alone is not enough; visual communication is also essential.
PRO TIP:
Ideal solutions are often systems such as WordPress, WebFlow, Shopify and WooCommerce for e-commerce. These platforms are helpful for small and medium-sized businesses and sometimes even large companies. They are very similar and offer solutions with a wide range of templates and plugins. This solution saves time and money in creating a website compared to a website or e-commerce store programmed from scratch.
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