This article talks about how web design affects buying behavior and sheds light on ways to improve a website’s design. Did you know that you have just 3 seconds to grab the attention of a visitor when they visit your website? Globally, attention spans have fallen and web designers and businesses are building smarter websites that can grab attention and engage visitors within that timeframe. A good website triggers positive buying behavior while bad ones can demotivate even an interested customer.
Why Does Web Design Affect The Buying Behavior?
The design and build of your website will definitely decide the outcome of your online marketing campaign. If something isn’t pleasing to the eyes, the user will not take a desired action. Your website must pass the ‘eyeball test’ and be optimized for conversion by strategically placing calls to actions (CTAs) ‘above the fold’ & ‘below the fold’. Let’s look at how web design affects buying behavior and conversion rates on your website. We’ll also look at how you can improve the design to meet your goals vis-à-vis design.
Understanding the Real Meaning of Conversion Rate
Conversion Rate is the percentage of visitors who are convinced to perform the desired action on a website. When more users are performing these actions, it is seen as a success for the website. The conversion rate is interpreted differently by different businesses. For instance, an online store would measure its success based on the percentage of visitors buying products, and similarly, a construction contractor would measure success on the percentage of trade calls or users asking for online quotes.
If you have an excellent product portfolio or offer services that are highly sought after and yet don’t see the level of activity and interest of your business through your website, it is a reflection of a poor website. Online conversions are more about how the information of your product or service is presented rather than the quality of the actual product or service. A poor website can become an eyesore and hurt your brand name.
Why Are My Visitors Turning Their Backs?
There are too many good websites around for your visitors to sit back and be content with what they have. If your visitors are exiting the website as soon as they arrive, you have a real problem at hand! It is similar to people entering a restaurant and looking for the exit door immediately. There can be several reasons behind this and here are some of the common issues you might be facing –
- Slowness – If your website doesn’t load in 3 seconds, 47% of users would click the [X] on their browsers. Unnecessary codes, large images, poor site structure, cheap hosting plans, etc. are common reasons behind slow loading websites.
- Broken Links – Imagine a guest sitting on a broken chair in a restaurant. Broken links or 404 error pages (page not found) are like those broken chairs and they immediately cast a negative impression about your brand.
- Bad Color Scheme – The human brain responds to different colors differently. Extremely loud colors and bad color combinations can result in page exits. They can affect the human mind negatively.
- Cluttered Pages – Stuffing your page with information, graphics and links can turn it into an eyesore. Your users are unlikely to find what they are looking for in a cluttered website and hence choose to leave.
- Poor Navigation – Lack of easy and logical navigation hurts the user experience. Your user must be confident about finding their way through your website. Poor categorization of pages and the absence of navigation buttons also contribute to a poor experience.
How Can You Fix It?
Now that we agree that good web design can influence buying decisions and bad designs can turn away customers, it’s time to get started with fixing your website. If you search for solutions online, you are likely to be overwhelmed with technical jargon and cliches; though you may be able to sift through some website designers in San Francisco that can help. To turn your website into a hero you should focus on the basics of web design. Here’s what should be on your priority list —
The Design Itself
94% of users make impression on a website at the first glimpse. You miss it and no amount of content and other strategies can undo the damage. As we have already stated you have 3 seconds to impress your audience and you better give your best shot in those three seconds! Your website should be pleasing to the eyes, the color theme must be inspirational and navigation a cakewalk. Minimalistic designs are a hit as they let you divert users’ attention to the most important part of the page. Use of large buttons, simple typography, and contrasting color schemes can do wonders to keep your users hooked on.
Mobile-Friendly Design
Close to 55% of traffic to a website comes from mobile devices. If your website isn’t mobile-friendly you are turning your back on 55% of the users! Mobile performance is also an important ranking factor for Google and other search engines. Your design should be mobile-friendly and offer a seamless experience to users on small screens.
Value Proposition & USP
Your inspirational design has hooked the audience – what next? A successful brand must establish its value proposition and highlight its USP. Good content is crucial to a website’s success. You need to sit down with your copywriters and establish your value proposition and how your brand can change the lives of your customers. The same goes for USP where you should avoid cliches such as “we are the best”, “we are professional” etc. Rather state the USP of your products in facts and figures such as “get 40% more battery life”, “enjoy 30% monthly savings” etc.
Call To Action
Grabbing attention and convincing about the USP of the product is only half the job done. You need to convert this attention into a transaction. Not having a Call to Action element on your website is synonymous with attracting people to a coffee vending machine without any buttons to operate. A good CTA is part design (its placement on the landing page) and part copywriting (the message) Your designer and copywriter need to get into the shoes of the customer to figure out what would it take to convert this lead to sale.
There are many strategies you can try out such as FOMO (fear of missing out) such as “Order now, offer ends today”, “Subscribe now and get 10% additional discount” etc. A website can be your mere digital presence or the growth engine for your business, depending on how you treat it. In a digital-driven world, your website’s visual appearances and functionality affect buying behavior and can make the difference between success and failure. Don’t let a poor website become an obstacle to growth. Don’t let a dysfunctional website yield space to competition. Take command of it now.
Partnering with Web Experts
When it’s time to redesign your website and turn it into your brand’s growth engine, you need a team that has delivered success to its clients. At Cyrusson, we just don’t redesign websites, we redefine your growth strategy. As a creative agency with expertise in web design, digital marketing, and content we put you on the growth curve. Reach out to us and let’s get turn your website into a ‘HERO’.