One of the best ways for a business to attract potential customers is to have a quality website. This can even be a great way to engage with them! If you are unsure as to whether your company's website is of a professional level, able to garner the attention of its visitors, then here are some things you should consider.
Making a website visually appealing is different than making it look good in the eyes of a search engine. But it really isn't too far off. Search engines use to rank websites based on keywords and a few other factors, but now they focus on the quality of the website's user experience. This means making a site easy to use and mobile friendly will actually help your get to the top of Google. Combine those with giving great answers to people's search queries and you have given a user an awesome experience! So, in order to fully understand what a "good" website consists of, you must first learn how to implement some techniques to make the visitor as happy as they can be.
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Informative:
First and foremost, your website should be informative; the reason a potential customer is probably going to your website is to learn more about your business and what it offers. You can add all the animations, interactive elements, and fun features you want, but if you do not explain who you are and what you do then your website is nothing but an entertaining distraction. While explaining yourself is important, it is also important to not overwhelm your visitors. It must also be easy for them to use and navigate.
User friendly:
Large walls of text are not very appealing. It is important to identify and display important information prominently, then lead into finer details if desired. A visitor should be able to easily identify where to find what they want; the information should be categorized/grouped and your pages should be labeled appropriately. Another aspect of user friendliness is to make sure that your site can be effectively used on any device, segueing into our next topic mobile responsiveness.
Mobile responsive:
A mobile friendly site simply means that your layout can change according to a device's size on a smartphone or tablet. In order for the site to display properly though, it must have some smart styling to look appropriate. This is increasingly important as more people have a smartphone than ever before. Even more so when people are looking things up more and more on their phones. According to a 2018 Statista report, 52.2% of all web traffic was going through mobile devices. We actually have a separate article dedicated entirely to the importance of a mobile responsive website. Check it out!
Aesthetically pleasing:
The last and possibly most obvious aspect of a good website is to make sure that it is pleasant to look at. Even if you have the data your visitors want in the exact spot they want it, they will still want something nice to look at. An ugly or hard to read site can cause your visitors to think that your company is unprofessional or not 'with-the-times', so try to avoid looking like a site right out of the 90's. We enjoy making videos for companies to place on their homepage as a hook. Readers tend to spend a lot longer on your site when you have video.
We make great sites:
If you would like help with building or redesigning your website to look sleek and professional, Lighthouse IT Solutions can now turn around websites faster than ever. (We could do yours in 2 weeks or less!) Please feel free to check out some of the most recent work we have done: Rapid Pattern | Supplemental Staffing | Hoover Wells | Lighthouse IT Solutions