Whether it be e-commerce or brochure, the best website design will always show a return on investment.
There's an old saying that goes something like: ‘Good, fast, or cheap. Pick two.’ This is still true when it comes to cheap website design. Like most things - buy cheap, buy twice.
So, what makes a good website?
Relevant content
A good website knows its target audience. It’s designed with them in mind. Language, colours, content, structure, images, and navigations are all built with purpose. With content, it’s quality over quantity. Remember, content is king!
Good design
A good website must be easy to read and easy to use. All navigations and links should be clear, concise and functional. A good website design should be aesthetically pleasing, but a great website has substance too. ‘Design is not just what it looks and feels like. Design is how it works.’ (Steve Jobs)
Responsive
‘80% of internet users own a mobile device.’ (Smart Insights, 2016). And this number is only increasing. Don’t forget tablets, iPads, iPhones, androids, Macs and PCs. A good website should work fabulously across all devices.
User-friendly
Not everyone will appreciate your decorative script font. Make sure your website promotes a good experience to everyone, including those with learning difficulties, disabilities and visual impairment. Designers – opt for something like ‘FS Me’ which was created especially for dyslexic users. It’s clean, accessible and simple.
Google-friendly
To get your website high up on SERPs you need to make friends with Google’s crawlers. One bad link and they’ll scarper. Digital Synopsis reckon ‘Page 2 of Google search results is the best place to hide a dead body’, because simply put, no one ever looks there.
Fast-loading
It’s 2017. We want everything, and we want it now. People won’t revisit a website that takes longer to load than it takes to brew a cup of tea. We live in time of instant gratification, and it’s up to you to match the expectations of your visitors.
Author Bio
Nicola Risi is our in-house Content, Copywriting and SEO specialist. She has been working closely with our web developers and designers in building some of our best websites yet. Nicola helps our clients ensure their content is user- (and Google) friendly by optimising copy and implementing SEO techniques.