Have you ever visited a website (by intention or by chance), and it was ‘love at first sight’? One look and instantly, something (and everything), about it just vibed with you? Your eyes grow bigger as you quickly scan every inch of your screen, there’s even a tinge of adrenaline, signaling to your brain “this website is fly, and I want to be part of their world!”. You just can’t click fast enough to keep feeding your sense of belonging.
This is essentially the effect you want your website to have - to create a connection between the viewer and your brand (most times, this is one of the initial interactions they’ll have with your brand).
How many times a day are you online? Searching for something specific, or simply browsing through your emails and social media platforms, clicking through to a website link? It happens so often, we don’t even notice it anymore. And it is with this ease and effortlessness that you want audiences to click on your website.
A website promotes your business 24/7/365. It is your portfolio, your conversation starter, your credibility marker - and one of your most effective tools to sell online.
Which is why we’re sharing tips in today’s entry on impactful website design.
2. Keep the design simple and clean
Not only is it easier to navigate, it will also load faster (remember, digital audience’s attention spans are in nanoseconds)
Choose a color palette that compliments, is easy on the eyes, and evokes emotions (refine to a maximum of 5 colors)
Choose fonts that are easy to read (including numbers), and limit to a combination of 2-3 fonts at most
3. High quality, big-impact imagery
This is the most critical part of your website look, and needs to be thought about with great detail and consideration
All imagery - photos, videos, graphics/illustrations - should be expressive and reflect your brand’s spirit and personality
Ensure all imagery is hi-res and not pixelated - this will add credibility and a sense of trust for your brand
4. Easy to navigate
Navigating websites, be it for the first time or the zillionth, is intuitive and you should maintain consistency throughout all pages
The easier your page is to navigate, the happier your viewer will be, the longer they’ll stay on your site, increasing chances of sales conversion
5. Words matter
Just as your selection of imagery is well curated, so should be your choice of words (we call it ‘copy’ in marketing speak)
Depending on the nature of your business, word length will vary - but the guiding principle remains: your copy should engage, attract and influence
6. Does it load in 2 seconds?
Did you know the average audience expects a website to load in 2 seconds? Anything beyond 3 seconds and you’ve lost them - pressure, right?
Optimize image sizes to help them load faster, and holding back from overloading your site with too much content which will decelerate the loading time
7. Make sure it works on your mobile phone and tablet
Majority of website views are from mobile phones and hand-held tablets, followed by laptops / desktops - so it’s so very important that your website is 100% mobile friendly
Some examples of compelling yet simple websites, by industry (some of which were built using Shopify, Wix, Wordpress or Squarespace):
Fashion
Beauty & Wellness
F&B
https://littlegoatchicago.com
Fitness
Once your website has gone live, keeping in mind it’s promoting your business 24/7/365, accelerate the growth process of your website visits with Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
It helps to drive more relevant traffic, leads, sales and ultimately revenue and profit to your business. SEO will enable you to attract very specific, high-intent traffic to your website.
To find out more about how it can work for your business, RIUH is hosting a SEO Workshop for Beginners with Aisha Preece on 31st July*.
*The workshop is fully booked at time of writing this article, however RIUH does have plans to host another SEO workshop due to overwhelming response - be on RIUH's Priority Notification List to not miss out!
I hope this entry helps to build your confidence to create / refresh your website with clear intentions and achieve your desired business goals.
Be well, take care and stay safe.
-Nikola
