5 Keys to Good Website Design Find online success with a well-designed site
If you own a brick-and-mortar business, you understand the value of keeping your storefront neat and clean. Whether you own a restaurant, accounting office, or clothing boutique, you want to make a great first impression and have customers to walk into a space that feels welcoming and uncluttered.
Why should your website be any different?
The truth is, it isn't. Having an online presence is critical for businesses in every industry. Often, your website -- or digital storefront -- offers potential customers the first experience they will have with your business and brand. If that experience is negative, looks unprofessional, or is difficult to navigate, chances are, those folks aren't going to return to your website or purchase your products.
Bottom line: your site needs to leave a good first impression.
Today's DIY website builders offer a multitude of templates that people can use when building their websites. While it's great to have options, sometimes too much of a good thing can be, well, too much of a good thing. People without a background in web design can grow overwhelmed wondering how to decide which template works best for their business.
While there are many design things to consider when creating a website, these five pointers guarantee you'll have a good website design.
Quick Loading Pages
Have you ever clicked on a website then waiting an interminable amount of time for the site to load? If you're like most people you probably don't wait for long. Many people grow frustrated and click away from or close slow-loading websites. To make sure your website doesn't fall into this category, seek out a professional design that has optimized HTML and images, and doesn't use Flash or other slow-loading components.
Visible Across Multiple Browsers and Devices
People access the web from a variety of browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, and Internet Explorer. It's important that your web design takes this into consideration, and your site appears without error across all major browsers. Additionally, more and more people are accessing the web from mobile devices, like cell phones, and iPads. This means it's critical that your site also appears error-free, and easy to read on mobile devices.
Uses High-Quality Images
When we talk about professional design, we can be speaking of a number of things, including the layout of your website's pages, the logo, and the font. But good design also incorporates high-quality photographs and graphics. If you are looking at a hotel website, you don't want to see dim rooms, or a poorly lit lobby. You'll want professional images that show the hotel in its best possible light. The same is true for any business website; your products and services should be accompanied by gorgeous images.
Well-Written, SEO-Friendly Text
Customers and clients will read the information available on your website and make judgements about how trustworthy and professional your business appears. If the text on your site is filled with typos and grammatical errors, you will appear to be more of a joke than a prospective place to do business. Make sure your text is written by a professional writer, or at the very least closely edited before it is published. Moreover, you'll want the text to be SEO-friendly, so that your site will appear in search results across various search engines.
Clear Navigation and Access to E-commerce Features
A professionally designed site should seamlessly incorporate website navigation, as well as any e-commerce features, such as an online store, product slideshows, appointment scheduling tools, and methods of payment.
The most surefire way to guarantee your website integrates all of these features is to use an online business platform, such as Ocoos. With Ocoos, you'll have access to a full-service concierge who builds your website for you, using the elements of professional design. Your site will be visible across browsers and mobile devices, and all technology updates are handled on the backend -- you'll never have to worry whether it stays up to date with current tech trends. Plus, Ocoos offers 24-hour, US-based support, if questions do arise.
