Overview
Many steps can go wrong when designing a site, which will affect visitor retention and success. Making a great website is more than just coding. You need to be up-to-date with the latest design and technical trends. The user experience (UX), for an eCommerce website is the most crucial factor. This article will give you some tips on how to design a good website.
Have a strong, clear brand message
Imagine the image that you want to project. Well-designed brand assets will help you create a new eCommerce site. Decide what color scheme and typography your customers like and use it. Position your logo or main message in the upper left corner of the screen. This is where our eyes naturally gravitate. These suggestions will make your website look more appealing and show what your brand stands for.
Make sure your site is easy to navigate
Sites with navigation that is solid will help search engine index your content, and enhance the customer experience. This is best achieved with a flat structure where each page is just a few clicks away from the home page. It is also good for SEO, as it enhances the user experience of your website.
Make it Accessible
Your site should be accessible to everyone. It’s not only about mobile optimization but also about making sure that your site is compatible with all browsers and devices.
In addition, you should make your website accessible for disabled visitors. It’s easy to make your site screen reader-friendly. You just need to label buttons correctly and add alt text for images. Your site will be easier to navigate if you use high contrast colors, and fonts that are readable.
Consistency is key
Users want to know exactly where they are on a website. Customers may feel disengaged or lost if the style or layout of a webpage changes drastically or feels different. It’s possible they don’t realize that they are browsing the same website!
It’s as bad as it sounds: Changing your website dramatically can weaken your brand and affect your bounce rate, which will then impact your SEO. Maintain consistency by adhering to brand guidelines and messages, and keeping design changes minimal.
Keep it Simple
A website should be easy to use. It should not be cluttered and the most important information should be easily accessible. Use white space to allow readers to scan your site quickly. Avoid using extra features such as carousels and pop-ups, because they can often be ineffective while affecting the user experience.
Optimize for Mobile
Don’t overlook when it comes to making your website mobile friendly. Nearly 45% of all internet traffic worldwide is mobile and mobile sales will make up 42.9% by 2024. Optimizing your website for mobile is essential.
Bad mobile optimization is the bane of every mobile shopper. It will increase bounce rates, and drive customers away from you to your competitors. It is best to use responsive design when optimizing your site for the mobile market, rather than adaptive design. This will prevent your website from being split between two or more pages in SERP rankings.
Consider SEO
SEO (Search Engine Optimization), as we have mentioned before, is very important. We’ve already discussed how many aspects of your website design, such as mobile optimization, site structure and UX in general, can affect your ranking. The quality of the content and loading speed are also important SEO factors. Does your website include videos and a weblog?
Include social share and follow buttons
If you don’t give your users the option to share, then you will only get so far. You could be losing out on social media traffic generated by people who are already visiting your website if your site does not have social share buttons and links to social media.
Use images wisely
Optimising your images will help you improve your search ranking, increase your leads, and generate traffic. Images not only enhance the look of your website, but also give your customers a better visual experience when they view your products.
It’s best to avoid using stock photos and instead use original, high-quality images. Although large images can negatively impact your SEO, it is better to use high-quality original images for the best experience.
Test Your Designs
Test your website on all browsers and devices before making it public. This will ensure that it is accessible to everyone. It’s great to have a beta site for testing out future updates and ensuring that they don’t harm your SEO, before adding them to the live site. You can use A/B tests, but you will need to test your website frequently to ensure it is working correctly.