Designing an Effective Corporate Website: 14 Steps
If you want people to believe in you as a vendor, you need your website to look credible and professional. A website that seems unprofessional will drive away customers. This is not acceptable in modern society.
Where do you even begin?
Select a Website Address 1.
In other words, the address of your website (like http://www.bizhelp24.com) is your domain name. Having a domain name is a must for launching a website.
To get the most out of your marketing dollars, pick a domain name that is identical to your company name or describes what you sell. On the other hand, if you are on a tighter budget, you may want to select a domain name incorporating a ‘keyword’ to increase the likelihood that your site will be discovered in relevant searches.
If your site is focused on easing back pain, it will do better in search engine results if its domain were something like [http://www.backpainrelief.xxx].
However, you should avoid using a name that could limit your company’s growth in the future. For instance, “wellheeled123.com” could be a catchy name for a high-end footwear website. However, the website name becomes useless if the company eventually expands into other lines of operation.
Create a website layout.
The homepage is the most vital page. If you want to wow your visitors, this is the page they will land on. You should explain who you are and why you’ve created a website on this page. Your point must come across without becoming buried in a sea of lengthy words. Please try to break up the content into manageable chunks and label them using headings in bold or larger sizes. Avoid underlining text to avoid confusing it with a link.
The “Call to Action” section of your homepage copy is crucial.
A “Call to Action” is the copy that directs readers toward the desired next step. Do you want them to give you a call to set up a consultation, swing by your store, or look around your site? Change the color of this command or make the font size larger to draw attention to it.
Add some visuals to your Home Page as well. An eye-catching image on your site will encourage people to stay longer.
A website’s Home Page should be uncomplicated and should convey the site’s mission and objectives.
Make an “About” page.
You can tell your website, and visitors, more about you or your company on the “About Us” page. Think about anything else that might be relevant to your customers.
Having a Map of your current location is also a good idea. Including a Map on your About Us page gives the impression that your firm is much larger than it is and adds credibility to your website.
If your company lacks a physical storefront, consider other ways to pique your clients’ interest. The exciting history of your organization or more information about your services could be discussed.
Whatever you choose to write, keep the paragraphs short.
Create a page where others may contact you.
You’re almost there with your three-page site design. A website isn’t complete without a Contact Us page.
Add your preferred method of direct contact here. Make sure your contact information is easy to find by making it larger than usual or using a different typeface.
However, remember that you don’t want to overwhelm your customers with too much information on this page. Always have something of value to offer on each page of your site. ‘Pretty But Useless’ is not something you want to develop. Let’s take a step back and remember that the whole point of a website is to offer its users something of value. If your page is missing that feature, you should concentrate on adding it before worrying about how to show the content.
Precisely what do you have to offer your site’s guests? Give them a reason to spend time on your site. Give that your full attention before moving on to the aesthetics.
Reduce your advertising to a ratio of 25% or less.
Some websites consist of nothing but advertisements, which I find shocking. We all know that if TV shows and magazines were just commercials, no one would watch or read them. Similarly, it takes more than just ads to make a website successful. The ideal ratio of advertising to editorial content on a website is between 25 and 75 percent. People visited your site because they were interested in what YOU have to give.
Certainly, list your ties and relationships if they are relevant to your site. Please don’t make the mistake I observed on the site of a significant fabric retailer, where the designer had linked to her friend’s Aromatherapy Massage business. The tone is unprofessional.
Avoid using auto-playing video or audio, as well as blinking or scrolling text, to divert attention.
The visuals and the sound are pretty annoying. When trying to read the content on your site, how can a person focus on all the distractions? Reading a newspaper while being poked in the shoulder several times is an exercise in futility.
The user is not helped by text that automatically scrolls. It’s probably there because the site’s creator thought, “Let me show how cool I am.” Instead of focusing on how the site looks, you should consider the individuals visiting it.
Visitors should be able to control when they hear embedded audio or video, not automatically.
No Image Backgrounds, Number Seven.
We use “amateur” to describe those who use full-image backdrops. Page load times on such a site can be painfully long. No one would consider this a professional establishment if they saw it.
Make an effort to be well-organized. 8.
Evaluate the material you have and determine the best way to present it. You should put as much effort into this as you would the visual design of your website. If the content is thrown up on the site in no particular order, forcing users to wander rather than being informed, you are doing them no favors.
Reduce Your Mouse Use!
What you say here is crucial. Reduce the number of steps required for a user to access your content. The more they explore the site, the more likely they are to leave.
10. Don’t make a page longer than two screens.
So now comes the tricky part. You should put a lot of thought into the design to reduce the number of clicks, but you shouldn’t go to the other extreme and cram everything onto one page.
The standard page size is two screens. Articles like this one, however, are an exception to the norm.
A menu should always be present on the page. Users can return to the homepage or navigate to a different site section.
Avoid placing navigation links at the bottom of pages (unless the pages are pretty short), or readers will have to scroll through the entire page to get them.
Easily Readable Websites are 12th.
The ideal width for a single line of text is around 600 pixels. Precisely what does THAT imply? In other words, the width of your web page shouldn’t exceed the size of the central two-thirds of the viewer’s screen. Newspapers and periodicals use columns, so the lines are short, and the beginning of the following sequence may be quickly located with a quick leftward glance.
The difficulty with a general layout is that it makes the text too wide for visitors with large screens to read comfortably.
13. Put text in contrasting colors. Light text on a soft backdrop, or dark writing on a dark background, is challenging to read.
Some pairings are doomed to fail from the start. Yesterday, for instance, I came across a website that insisted I read its text in fluorescent green type on a fluorescent red background. The only reason I kept going was because the CEO wanted my input.
Consult an Expert.
Remember that you can always get help from experts if this all seems too much to take in. When designing your website with SEO in mind, a skilled designer will examine the above factors and more. He hopes it becomes helpful to you. For a few hundred pounds, there are plenty of companies that will accomplish everything mentioned above and more.
Neil Holley-Williams specializes in the design of corporate identities and websites for small businesses. To better serve his customers, Neil is also learning cutting-edge SEO strategies. To learn more, check out.
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