{"id":38963,"date":"2020-09-30T17:15:26","date_gmt":"2020-09-30T21:15:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/?p=38963"},"modified":"2021-07-14T15:37:10","modified_gmt":"2021-07-14T19:37:10","slug":"top-tips-for-improving-your-web-design","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/2020\/top-tips-for-improving-your-web-design\/","title":{"rendered":"Top Tips For Improving Your Web Design"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you\u2019re improving your web design, imagine you\u2019re a visitor to your site. Within five seconds of landing on your website, could a visitor determine what it is that your company does? Can they easily navigate to different parts of the site? Is your bounce rate high? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A website can\u2019t succeed if it only excels in limited aspects, like only having great design <\/a>or great content. A successful website needs to have a design that feeds into your website\u2019s user experience, functionality and complements your content. You should also think about accessibility, with a service like AudioEye<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your website must clearly communicate what you do, why you do it, and who you do it for. It\u2019s easy to get distracted by how good your business is, and then forget to make sure you\u2019re addressing the core concerns your audience has. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are the best website tips to make sure you\u2019re going in the right direction with your redesign, and to make sure that you aren\u2019t turning visitors away. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have A Plan<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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A Comprehensive Website Planning Guide (Part 1)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t just start designing your website. To make sure that your website is meeting the needs of your visitor, you need to spend time on mapping out your buyer\u2019s journey from the first time they land on your website to the moment that they become a customer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Think about what pages they are going to view, what content they will read, and what offers they might convert on. Understanding how your user journeys around your site will help you to nurture leads through the sales funnel. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Design your website for the next step, not the final step. Make sure you answer the questions a user has in the right order. Take what you already know about your customer base and research how they went from site visitor to customer. Use this data to map out a strategy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Remove Some Things From Your Website<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are certain elements on a website that detract from the value and message that you are trying to convey. Complicated animations, overly long content, and images that look like bad stock photography are some of the things you should remove. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

An audience has an average attention span of eight seconds, so you need to create a first impression quickly that gets your main points across. This can be done with short, powerful sections of content and icons and photographs that are applicable, sectioned off with clear and concise headlines. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you can get these elements right, go back through your content and remove any ambiguous terminology or overly technical jargon. All this does is confuse your users and make your content more complex. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avoid over-used terms like next-generation, flexible, robust, groundbreaking, and innovative. These terms are used by thousands of companies, and won\u2019t make your content any more appealing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Include Social Share And Follow Buttons<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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What Is The Best Placement For Successful Social Media Buttons?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Producing great content and strong offers will only go so far if you aren\u2019t giving your visitors the option to share what you\u2019re doing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If your website doesn\u2019t currently have any social share buttons, you could potentially be missing out on a lot of traffic from social media that would be generated by people who already visit your site or read your blog. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social share buttons are small buttons on the top or bottom of blog posts. The buttons are the icons of different social media platforms, which allow users to share content directly on their social media channels. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The buttons are a way of encouraging social sharing without being pushy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Implement Calls-To-Action<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When a visitor lands on your site, do they know what they should do next? They won\u2019t know which pages they should visit or what actions to take if you don\u2019t give them some kind of direction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A call-to-action button is one of the best elements that guide a user to the next step they should take on a page. Most of us know we should do this, but it can be hard to accurately guide a user through your website. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s all too easy to spam your website with the most bottom-of-the-funnel call-to-action without properly nurturing your users with other calls-to-action that are the top or middle of the funnel. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To see if your site does this, read through your pages on your website. Are you finding most pages, including your blog posts, that only have a call-to-action for a demo or a trial consultation? If so, then you need an update. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Add in calls-to-action that offers materials to learn more or to solve pain points<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once a user has identified your company as one that offers solutions to pain points, they will feel much more comfortable about researching your services to see if you can make these solutions a reality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Examples of calls-to-action that you can use are \u2018click here for more information\u2019, \u2018download our sample\u2019, \u2018sign up for the webinar\u2019, or \u2018watch the video\u2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Use The Right Images<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Not every image will fit with the type of message that you are trying to get across to your audience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are lots of images that you can choose from, even some for free. There\u2019s really no excuse for filling your website with cheesy, stock-looking photographs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just because you can find an image on a stock photo website, that doesn\u2019t mean the image will look genuine or build trust in your company. You want to use pictures that show the real people who work at your company and your real office. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If real photographs aren\u2019t an option, choose your stock photos carefully to bring more realism to your brand. Make sure all images you use properly match who your company is and what your content is about.  If you are looking for an affordable way to get stock photos you should keep an eye on online graphic design bundles<\/a> which are often discounted and contain a ton of additional designer resources for a great value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Navigation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Designing A Winning Navigation Menu: Ideas and Inspirations<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When you design your website, navigation is key. Navigation is the map that shows users the core places they can visit on your site. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s nothing more annoying than a site with disorganized or confusing navigation. When you\u2019re improving the navigation of your website, it\u2019s essential to make sure that a site user can easily find out what they\u2019re looking for. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A lean navbar is a good idea and should include streamlined content, navigation hierarchy, and responsive design. This also means the navigation won\u2019t change much on mobile devices. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If a user can\u2019t find what they\u2019re looking for, they won\u2019t have a reason to stay on your website. Instead, they will almost definitely bounce and find a competitor who offers them a better site experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let Your Visitors Scroll On Your Homepage<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Above the fold is old news. Don\u2019t shy away from designing a longer homepage. You can create a seamless experience by including three to five sections that will help to direct new and recurring users to the proper areas of your site. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are lots of options for these sections, but there are some crucial elements that include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n