The growth of e-commerce in the U.S. will reach $666 billion in 2020. With the rapid rise of e-commerce, you have to keep up for you to benefit from the endless opportunities. Having an exceptional website design is indispensable.
Your website will create a first impression of your site’s visitors. Great web design will convince your site visitors to stay longer, which increases the conversion rate.
Small businesses need to know web design essentials to help them grow. Click here to know the essentials necessary in web designs for small business growth.
1. Responsive Design
Having a responsive web design is vital in e-commerce. With a responsive website, you’ll be sure that your site won’t be outdated. Redesigning your site now and then can prove costly in the long run.
Responsive web designs can work on mobile devices and desktop. Users will get a consistent experience regardless of the device in use. While this sophisticated design can be quite expensive at first, it is worth the sacrifice.
You’ll reach customers on any device. More importantly, you’ll save yourself the embarrassment of a site that wouldn’t load when making a presentation in a meeting. The cost of having a responsive design is a small price to pay, considering the benefits you’ll enjoy.
2. Simplicity and Clarity
You only have about eight seconds to grab the attention of anyone visiting your site. Within those few seconds, a user landing on your homepage will decide if they want to further explore your site. It is crucial to ensure that one knows who you are and your services within those few seconds.
Internet users prefer a site that is easy to navigate. Consider having a clear layout. Shorter menus are ideal as they can direct visitors to desired areas of the website without any confusion.
A simple website is not only great for internet users, but search engine crawlers also prioritize easy to navigate websites. You’ll have higher chances of a top-ranking if your website isn’t complex. Besides, a simplistic design increases your site’s speed, ensuring that visitors are sticking around longer.
3. Mobile Compatibility
A report by the World Advertising Research Center shows that about 72.6% of internet users worldwide will be accessing the web through their smartphones within the next five years. As such, you need to prioritize mobile-friendliness as an essential part of web designs for small business growth. In today’s competitive market, having a site that isn’t working optimally on mobile can take you down even before realizing it.
You’ll be likely to get more site visitors if your website design is compatible with mobile devices. You can check your site through a smartphone to get a glimpse of users’ experience. If you’re struggling to navigate through the site using your phone, change the design.
Google’s Mobile Website Speed Testing is a tool that can help determine your site’s mobile-friendliness. You can make the necessary adjustments once you get your report.
4. High-Quality Content
Quality content is central to any website. However, you need to be keen not to overload the landing page with unnecessary words. Select critical information that visitors will find useful once they land on your site.
Remember that videos are more likely to attract users’ attention as compared to texts. You might want to introduce your services through a video. The text you include should be precise to keep your site visitors engaged.
It would also help to ensure that your site adheres to SEO for better ranking. Spruce up any outdated information when renovating your site. Understand more about keywords and how to come up with content that your visitors find valuable.
5. Focus on Typography
One of the website essentials that you can’t afford to ignore is typography. You better seek professional website design services for you to get the typography right. Typography, in this case, focuses on the legibility of fonts.
The variety of fonts available gives you endless options. Choose a font that’s consistent with your message. It would also be advisable to avoid uneven or irregular margins that can be distracting to a user.
A professional web designer will work to enhance the aesthetics of texts. If you go for DIY, avoid mistakes such as squeezing or stretching the text. Work with fonts that have condensed versions such as Futura.
6. Be Clear on the Hours of Operation and Location
It’s not surprising to have users who visit your site to just know more about your location and hours you operate. Such basic information should be easily accessible on your homepage. It is advisable to have such details on the menu to ensure that anyone visiting your site can access it within seconds.
Including location details further improves the chances of higher ranking. With more consumers searching for local businesses online, your website will perform better if you include the market you serve. What’s more, indicating location will help filter leads so that you can get relevant prospects within your operation area.
7. Social Media Integration
Social media has gained immense popularity in recent years. Website owners ought to understand the significant impact of social media on e-commerce transactions. With the apparent interrelationship, integrating your social media platforms with your website is prudent.
Sites such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitters have millions of users who can view your offers. When you post your products, users should find it easy to click through from social media to your website. Conversely, anyone navigating through your site should be able to share information with social media sites.
Social media integration increases the chances of referrals from clients and prospects. If you don’t have a presence on the most popular social networking sites, work on having a business profile before thinking of designing a website. The social media act as your sales materials.
8. Imagery
Did you know that people are likely to retain 65% of the information when paired with a relevant image? On the flip side, they will only remember 10% of the information if there’s no accompanying pictures or videos. Images are a key part of web designs for small business growth.
Pictures communicate what words can’t. It would be advisable to invest in pictures that describe your business more. Working with custom images of your staff, office, and products can make your website appear livelier.
You don’t have to feel limited to image customization. There are thousands of images on the internet. However, adhere to all copyright rules to avoid getting in legal tussles.
9. Integrate Your Website With CRM Systems
Integrating your CRM with your website will add significant value to your company. This approach will ensure that you can access the latest data instantly. The real-time data access means that you’ll have improved customer service and better conversations with your clients as you’ll be sure of their purchasing habits.
Merging the CRM system with your website further reduces the need for administration overhead. The automation increases efficiency, which will be evident in how you run your business. Integrating the two will also enable you to profile customers for improved marketing and responses.
When choosing a web design, select a platform that allows the integration of CRM. It will be easier to create sales funnels and manage customers. This lead generation strategy will increase your digital marketing effectiveness.
10. Have Clear Contact Information
Potential customers shouldn’t spend unnecessary time on your website looking for your contact. Once a visitor lands on your page, they should know how to get in touch with you within seconds. If your contact information isn’t clear, you might lose a potential client.
Many online visitors don’t have the patience to explore your site, searching for your contact. You can make it easier for them by placing the contact on the top or left corner of the landing page. It is also advisable to have the contact information on each page, probably at the footer, to increase visitors’ chances of finding the ‘how to get in touch’ details.
11. Reviews and Customer Testimonials
Customers’ reviews are a great way to get leads. Some site visitors focus solely on the testimonials to know whether they’ll engage with you further. Testimonials are part of the web design essentials that can get visitors converting into sales.
When you’ve offered satisfactory service to customers, reach out for testimonials. The reviews and testimonials play a crucial role in building your brand reputation.
Your loyal customers wouldn’t mind having their reviews published. If you get negative reviews, reach out to the customers to know areas needing improvement. You’ll be surprised at the much you’ll learn about customer service through the reviews.
The Essentials of Web Designs for Small Business Are a Prerequisite for Growth
Creating a website is the first step in digital marketing. Prioritizing web design essentials is what will set you apart from your competitors. It is crucial to research more on web designs for small business to increase your chances of growth.
Your website is not static. As you continue learning, you’ll make adjustments gradually. You can start with a fully functional and aesthetically optimized site and improve on the features later on.
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