Top 7 Tips for Effective Web Design

Before journeying out into the wide world of web site development, or if you are already on the path, you need to be prepared. There are many aspects that you will need to consider. Some are important and some are not. Use this guide to help you determine what we think are the most important aspects of web development from a business point of view.

Strategise and plan

One of the most important reasons that websites do well (from a marketing point) goes back to the start of the planning process. You need to make sure that you planned correctly for the reason that you are building this website in the first place. What is the strategy for the website and how will it draw your customers to use your services or buy your products? Often, a website has all the right intentions, but don’t forget that not only does it have to communicate what you offer, but it also has to sell your services without a sales person physically being there.

Learn from you competitors

There are probably many things that you will do differently to your competitors as you will want to be unique and original. However, don’t look past the success of your competition either. When starting out, look at the top searches on Google, based on what kinds of keywords people would be using to search for you. First of all, you can see how they are using search engine techniques to get themselves there, but then have a look at their website objectively. What are the good things that make their websites work? Perhaps it makes that one man outfit look like a big business? Or perhaps it is a big bright promotion on the home page that is giving them real success and turning browsing users into buying customers. Be objective!

Be prepared to market

Your website will not market itself.  This is the case with any business that you run or operate.  Just because the overall costs of setting up an online shop is cheaper than a traditional bricks and mortar shop, it does not mean that you can forget about the next step. Google will take its due course in listing your website, often even taking 3-6 months before it promotes it, and that’s just to end up in the pool amongst millions of other competitors.

If your business relies solely on the website bringing the business, then this is the most important aspect. Search engine optimisation techniques are important to get your site amongst the giants, but above all, having links to your website from established locations will do you wonders. Google Adwords is a popular means of getting clicks to your site. You pay for the traffic, but the visitors are highly qualified and you will be able to establish a pattern of return on investment.

Search engine optimisation

The big buzz at the moment is surrounding search engine optimisation (SEO) and the relevant services. This will be one of the first aspects of online marketing that you will encounter soon after having launched the website. Our recommendation is to plan ahead. Put some initial effort in when talking with your designers to implement the necessary steps to make sure that once you are ready to start your SEO, then your website will also be ready. Be prepared, as running an optimisation campaign can be time consuming and also costly. But this is no different to opening a shop and working out how to draw customers in.

Facebook – only do it if it makes sense

Facebook is cool and it often makes sense for brands to establish an online following in the pool of Facebook users. There are many businesses that flourish well on this platform due to the nature of the “what’s the latest” kind of culture. In many other cases, businesses end up creating a presence, experimenting a long time, costing both time and money, but without the return expected. You really need to ask yourself the question…”would I look for this kind of business on facebook myself”? And don’t just trick yourself into saying yes. You will need to put time and effort into making the facebook presence successful. Will you even have that time while you are also running the business?

Focus on gaining confidence

Keep your website sharp yet simple. You want visitors to understand your business as soon as they arrive. Your home page needs to reflect your business in a professional manner. Customers will choose your business over others if they feel that you can help them by being good at your service. Don’t use pictures of your staff - unless the personnel are part of the service (eg. lawyers/accountants). Provide phone numbers and contact details on all your pages if possible. Don’t hide these details on some page in the corner – you want people to call you! Direct contact is also often preferred over contact forms. Depending on the type of service you offer, it might be prudent to capture that potential business via a direct phone conversation.

Update your website regularly

For online businesses and bigger companies, this is an easier task to achieve, because you have a lot of content that you can naturally keep fresh. However, as a small business, you need to think about keeping your website updated. Make an effort at least every 4-6 months to have a look at your website. And by looking, we do mean reading the content and reviewing all of your pages. You will notice things that are out of date, news items that need to be refreshed, image galleries that you can add your latest works to..etc. You will also have gained some business skills or services that you can now add to the website and promote. Basically, don’t let your website get stale, because your visitors will also see it.