Designing a Captivating Website

It’s impossible to have a successful website without having a killer web design. When users come to your page, they will make quick judgments about the display – and thus, about the company – without even thinking about it. It’s essential to have a website design that hooks the user in from the get-go, ensuring that they remain on the page and get what they need.

For any hope of conversion, you need a great website. It doesn’t matter how many conversion boosting tactics you use; they will be null and void if the site is of bad quality. Usability, navigability, and landing page design are all crucial.

Here are seven things you need to consider when designing a website.

1. Clear Theme

The first thing you need for a website is a clear theme. Your company should already have a strong brand image with a color scheme, font selection, and matching imagery. All of this should be present on the landing page, giving visitors immediate insight into the brand and the establishment of common threads.

There are few things worse than clicking on a website to find your senses overwhelmed by the entire color spectrum. Make sure you limit the website to one house style and stick to a small number of colors and fonts. Users are more likely to stick around if the page is clear and straightforward.

Don’t underestimate the power of white space, too. Having plenty of white space on the page ensures that users know where to look; their eyes are drawn to the right places where the information lies.

2. Obvious Purpose

The likelihood is that the user has found your site by searching a keyword. Alternatively, they might have heard about it through word of mouth or advertising. Either way, they probably know a little about your brand, but not the whole story. That’s what your landing page is there to do.

Upon entering the site, it should immediately become clear what your company does. This means including relevant images, a short, snappy bio, and a clear title.

Web users don’t want to think too much. The first law of usability is that a website should be obvious and self-explanatory, which means making the homepage really clear.

3. Imagery

Visual media is a huge deal online. Web visitors want to see images that help them determine whether this is the right page for them. All imagery on your site should match the rest of the branding; it needs to be expressive and show your brand’s personality.

Although images aren’t necessarily things that users actively think about, they do make a huge impression. Make sure all the images you use are high-quality, unique, and give off the right feeling.

4. Visual Hierarchy

Visual hierarchy refers to arranging elements in order of importance. This can mean ordering them by size, color, or contrast. One example is placing the largest text – the site title – at the top of the page. It creates a focal point that draws the reader’s attention.

Think about the flow, too. Viewer eyes will then track downward, so what do you want them to see next? Typically, this involves some whitespace, a navigation bar, and some more information about the brand.

Having the right page arrangement is crucial for conversion because it makes all your content easier to perceive.

5. Modern Design

Most internet users have probably visited a webpage before and immediately exited because it had a WordArt title and images that were made on Microsoft Paint. It’s crucial to keep updating content, and this includes website design and imagery.

Technology moves fast, and users can often tell when visual content is outdated. Try to stay on top of trends and stick to modern, high-quality designs. Make sure all imagery and graphics are in the correct resolution and appear unpixelated, too.

6. Mobile-Friendly

In this day and age, having a mobile-friendly site is crucial. Most web software has a feature that lets users view your site on mobile, so it’s worth checking out. Most of your competitors will have websites compatible with mobile and tablet, so this is something you also need to implement.

This also means that the website should load quickly on mobile devices.

7. Easy Navigation

Every user will come to your website for a specific purpose. If they can’t find what they need, then they will immediately exit and look elsewhere. It’s vital that your website is easy to navigate so that people know where to look.

There needs to be a stand-out navigation bar or menu where users can scan for what they need. Ideally, there should also be a well-functioning search bar that helps other users get to where they need to be.

If it’s too complicated, the average web user will not stick around to figure it out. Ultimately, simple is best.

Final Thoughts on Designing a Captivating Website

Designing a captivating web page is not rocket science. In fact, when in doubt, it’s best to keep it simple. Remember that users who visit your site will first be scanning the page rather than looking at it in-depth. So, the page needs to have a design with a logical flow.

High-quality images, modern design, and visual hierarchy are all essential. It’s also critical to have a strong brand theme with a message that speaks to visitors. If stuck, ask yourself, why do users come to your website? What are they looking for? Then, all you need to do is provide it. Plenty of content management systems and website designers have in-built themes to help you figure these things out. As long as you spend time planning and figuring out what you need to provide, you should be on your way to building a winning website.