7 Principles of Good Website Design
You can’t escape the fact there’s a big change in the way people interact with the world and how they consume products and services. It is your job as a business owner to keep up with consumer patterns,
and if you are one of the thousands of businesses (and yes, we see them everyday) that is still using an old website (anything older than 3 years is pretty much a crime in the online world) then you are not only missing out in a lot of opportunities, you are also hurting your business by allowing such an aberration to represent who your corporation is.
Here at Voova digital we see this everyday, clients come to us wondering why their websites aren’t generating any visits or business, and though we really don’t have the heart to be openly honest about it, the fact remains: Customers are not technology ignorant anymore, they know exactly what a good website looks and navigates like, if yours isn’t, they won’t visit it (or will ‘bounce’ of the second they come in contact with your web-page). There are also those clients who have websites that are so difficult to use/ ugly to look at that they are affecting their business negatively by presenting a very bad brand image all over the internet.
Let’s go over some of the consequences of having an old website every business owner needs to know about:
You will look unprofessional
This is just a fact of the digital era, people will look at your website and judge your product/service based on what they see. You just can’t help this fact, is just how people think and if you are not adapting to the changing time and letting your website do the talk for you, well, you are creating a very bad impression about your business form the get-go.
The best way to understand this phenomenon is to put yourself in you customer’s shoes, and never forget, people use the internet to find all sorts of things. Once they land on your site, and instead of being greeted by a well designed, functional website (that allows them to find out more about your company and product) they are presented with an out dated, ugly and painfully hard to navigate website they will think that’s exactly what your business is like: Old, not updated and absolutely incapable of providing a good experience for their customers.
I can’t really make this clearer without showing you a picture, now, look at the two websites below and tell me which one would you choose to give your money to. Keep in mind they are both e-commerce shops, but the difference is gigantic:
A bad example:
Why is this Bad?
Unclear products
Old (rather ugly) design
Pages don’t work
No new content or blog
A good example:
Why is this Good?
Very clear products with beautiful pictures
Built using a beautiful and functional WordPress Professional Theme
Blog constantly updated
A bad website will make your business look useless
This is a fact most business owners fail to grasp since they are not used to the way people relate on the internet. Being online is all about sharing, the more you share your knowledge, expertise and experience, the more people can relate to you and the more likely they will be to both share (free and incredibly effective advertisement) and consume (direct profits) what you are offering. The times for having a website just displaying what you have and hoping people will just randomly purchase or inquire about your products are GONE. You have to actively seek people to come visit, and before you can do that you need to have a well designed website with a modern blog functionality.
You have set up a business because you consider yourself a knowledgeable and influential person with in that industry, if you do not have an appropriate platform to showcase to the world your acquired wisdom (and this is why having a good website is incredibly powerful) then people won’t know how much you can offer them.
Once you start blogging you will realize how (as long as your content is high-quality, useful and relevant to your potential customers) rapidly people will start listening to what you have to say, it won’t be too long before you are getting inquiries and purchases just from the content your website is producing (and don’t forget how powerful good content becomes once you start using social media to spread it to the masses).
With an old website you are missing on opportunities 24/7
One of the best explanations I ever heard about a website is this: You must consider your site as another member of your staff, why would you pay for it’s work if you will just let it sit there doing nothing? Websites are sadly not people so you can’t really make it work by telling it, you have to make it work for you by constantly updating it, adding content and blog posts regularly (keep in- mind content can be pictures, videos, infographs, etc).
The more content you generate and the more ‘alive’ your site looks the more people that will come back to it. Never forget every time someone comes to your old and outdated website chances are they are turning right back to Google and going to your competitor’s website for the same information you could be offering but aren’t because of your useless website. At the end of the day, the internet is the most competitive market out there: If you aren’t doing your part properly, someone else surely is- so you better start working today to change that!
Conclusion:
Having a website in these modern days is a must, but that doesn’t mean any website will do. You can’t expect to own the same site for 2 years and not update content on it, things just don’t work like that anymore, do not forget a bad website will create a bad reputation for you and your company.
As a business owner you want the world to see your company as the best in the industry, having a professional looking and useful website is a very efficient (remember that you can track everything online, how many people visit your site, how long they stay, what are they looking at on the page, etc) way to get almost immediate results. This is just a few amazing advantages of having your own beautiful site:
- Allows you control over your brand
- Gives you the ability to sell your product/service worldwide
- Provides a direct contact channel with the customer.
- It is the ideal platform to showcase you knowledge and attract potential customers.
- The best platform to demonstrate your influence over your industry
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