If you want your website to attract and convert clients, it needs to be designed with conversions in mind. This means integrating design principles that support conversions and continuously optimizing for improved results.
During the wireframe phase, identify which elements require stronger visual priority to guide visitors toward website conversions. Maintain regular communication with the web development team to ensure that the final website design reflects the intended design, and minimize significant deviations.
1. Keep it simple
In a world of short attention spans, users need websites that load quickly and avoid bloated content. They also need pages that are easy to navigate and understand. Web designers must understand these user-centered principles when designing for conversion.
According to Oli Gardner, the co-founder of Unbounce, visitors spend about five seconds on a website before they decide whether or not to stay and take action. This means your page must instantly highlight the most important information to visitors, or they will just leave.
He also suggests using the 8-second rule – which states that visitors read about 20% of the text on a webpage. This is a good rule to keep in mind when crafting website copy, as it allows you to convey your message in as few words as possible.
Assuming you have your messaging down, the next step is to design a high-converting website is to use wireframes and information architecture to build an outline of your web page. This will help you establish the right order of page elements and ensure that they support your conversion goals.
Then, once you have a rough outline of your webpage, use visual designs to create the desired look and feel of the website. This includes determining which images to use, how to size them appropriately and ensuring that all elements on the page are visible and easily recognizable by users. Finally, remember to include trust-building elements, such as social proof and testimonials, to increase visitor confidence and inspire them to take the desired action on your site – be it purchasing a product or signing up for a newsletter.
2. Make it relevant
Keeping your content relevant is critical to attracting and keeping your visitors’ attention. However, the concept of relevance is somewhat subjective, depending on a visitor’s individual perspective and goals. For example, the information on a product page may be more important to one visitor than to another. To ensure that the most important aspects of your website are prominently displayed, use a combination of design techniques to guide user attention strategically.
For example, placing a person’s face in the center of your call to action can draw people’s eyes to it by implying that they should follow the person’s gaze. This is an effective way to entice visitors to engage with your website and ultimately convert.
Another tactic for making your content more relevant is to provide clear and concise information that aligns with your users’ expectations of what they need to achieve their goals. For instance, by providing easy access to information on privacy settings and consent options, you can empower your users and build trust.
The structure of your website is also important in establishing relevance. Using wireframes to lay out the information architecture of your pages is an essential step before diving into visual design. These rough designs help you understand what features are most important and how they should be prioritized on your pages, ensuring that your conversion goals are supported throughout the user journey.
It’s also important to communicate clearly with your web development team to minimize significant deviations from your original design plans. This will help prevent your developers from introducing decorative elements that do not contribute to the intended conversion goal and will ensure that every element of your website serves its conversion-focused purpose.
3. Keep it clean
While entrepreneurs obsess about which ads will draw the most traffic, which software will maximize conversions, and how well their copy will seal the deal, they often overlook one of the most critical drivers of success: page design. The wrong design will leave users confused, unsure of what to do next, and scrambling to leave your site (hemorrhaging sales and conversions in the process). The right design, on the other hand, will seamlessly guide visitors toward the actions you want them to take, like clicking your call-to-action button or having a working SSL, as an SSL cert is standard for SEO.
To keep your website clean and user-friendly, it’s important to limit the number of elements on each page. Overly cluttered websites are distracting and difficult to navigate, so it’s important to only include essential content. In addition, it’s a good idea to use color and graphics to draw attention to key areas of the page. Bright colors, for example, attract the eye more than neutral shades and can be used to create movement on the page and direct the viewer’s focus.
Also, when designing a page, be sure to keep in mind the F-pattern of how readers typically read webpages. Research shows that visitors generally start in the top left corner of a web page and then scan across the top, sides, and down the right side until something grabs their attention. This makes it especially important to make sure your call-to-action is easily visible and positioned at the top of the page. It’s also important to provide contrasting elements so that the page is visually separated and easy to understand.
4. Make it mobile-friendly
For decades, people have associated web browsing with desktop computers. That’s changing, however, and mobile devices are now the primary way that people search for products and services online. It’s important to take this into consideration when creating a website, especially when it comes to conversion. A non-mobile-friendly website can lead to a negative user experience, increase bounce rates, and decrease organic visibility.
Thankfully, there are a few simple design principles that can help make a website mobile-friendly. The first step is to understand the user journey and how they interact with your site. This will allow you to design an experience that meets the needs of your audience, ensuring that visitors can take the desired action.
Another key factor is to keep in mind that mobile screens are smaller than desktop ones, meaning that design elements must be minimised and resized to ensure legibility without compromising visual appeal. Additionally, images can add a lot of weight to websites and affect loading times, so it’s important to optimise them for mobile users.
In addition, it’s vital to ensure that all website forms are mobile-friendly, whether this is a contact form or a shopping cart checkout. This makes it easier for customers to get in touch or buy your product, thereby increasing conversions.
When it comes to converting, designing for mobile isn’t an option – it’s a necessity. By following these five design principles, you can create a high-converting website that will maximise your sales and customer retention. For more information, be sure to contact a Boise SEO company who can assist you in both web design and search engine optimization services. Their team can guide you through the entire process, from identifying your goals to implementing your website’s new design.
5. Make it easy to convert
When visitors encounter a website that makes it easy for them to complete a desired action, they are much more likely to recommend it to friends and colleagues. This type of word-of-mouth conversion is a powerful marketing strategy, especially when done consistently.
A website that is slow to load or difficult to navigate can significantly decrease user satisfaction, which ultimately has a negative impact on conversions. This is why it is crucial to ensure that all pages of a website run smoothly and efficiently.
Keeping your web design process focused on optimization is key to improving your website’s conversion rates. This means ensuring that every element on the page serves its intended purpose rather than being added for aesthetic purposes. Having regular communication with your development team throughout the process can help prevent any elements from being added that may have a detrimental effect on the page’s conversion rate.
It is also important to make sure that your CTA buttons and forms are visible and easy to click. This can be achieved by using the appropriate amount of white space and by ensuring that they stand out from other page elements. It is also important to use clear, persuasive copy that encourages users to take the action you want them to take.
Optimizing a website for conversions requires a lot of work and attention to detail. However, implementing these five simple design principles can have an enormous impact on your website’s conversion rates. So next time you’re in need of a redesign, be sure to keep these design tips in mind! For more advice on how to improve your site’s conversions, download our free ebook.
