How your website can leave a lasting impression

Let’s hit you with a statistic: there are over 644 million websites online, right now.  Needless to say, they don’t all contain quality content but that still leaves an awful lot of people vying for your customers’ attention.

In a crowded marketplace, it can feel instinctive to shout. To plaster your website with ‘sale’ stickers, and add reams of information to your ‘about us’ section. But in websites, as in life, the most powerful approach is often the most parred back. Where your competitors get it wrong, you should get it right with an elegant, simple website that’s a pleasure for your customer to scroll through. After all, if your visitor leaves with a good impression, they’re more likely to come back. But how to get those return clicks? Read on.

Follow the 80/20 Rule
By which we mean: 80% beautiful imagery; 20% carefully crafted copy. Let’s face it, attention spans have taken a big dip since the birth of the internet, and while we were once a nation content to read the backs of cereal boxes and shampoo bottles, the average person now gets distracted within just 8 seconds. Our brains crave bright, visual stimuli that we can quickly process, and while there’s definitely a place for long-read content online, sadly, your website isn’t one of them. Our advice? Work with our copywriter, tell them to keep it brief and put the focus of your website on your photography. Your conversion rates will say it all.

Ensure that it translates onto any device
Sadly, no customer in the world is going to be as loyal to your brand as you are. And any barriers to purchase – a slow-loading page, an overly complicated check-out or a website that doesn’t adapt to a phone screen – could be all it takes to put them off your website and send them clicking somewhere else. At SO Marketing, we use specialised techniques to ensure that your visitors get a smooth, fully responsive experience, whether browsing on a mobile, tablet or laptop, so you can worry about the big things – like running your business!

Don’t overcomplicate it
Remember those small attention spans? They are constantly looking for an excuse to wander away from your business’ website. And if you consider that, on average, users stay on a website for less than a minute, then you may want to direct them towards your online shop before they go clicking off into the sunset. Navigationally, there should be no more than five separate pages for your reader to comb through. If you’re an online retailer, then your homepage should ideally lead straight into your shop, but aside from that, you only really need an ‘about’, ‘blog’ and ‘contact’ page. Of course, this isn’t a hard and fast rule, and depending on what service your business provides, you may have to discuss additional content with your web designer. At SO Marketing, we pride ourselves as much on our logistical expertise as we do on our design knowledge, so we can work with you to strike a balance between too much information and not enough.

Hire a professional
I guess we would say that. But unless you have a dedicated background in UX or graphic design, crafting a website can be hard. Basic layouts and themes are widely available online, but whilst they’re perfect for a personal blog, they’re usually way too simple for a business. The great thing about having a website designed through SO Marketing is that we predominantly use WordPress as our content management platform. So, once we’ve finalised your initial design, you’ll be able to update your website whenever you see fit – giving you the best of both worlds; a beautiful website, and a simple way to update it with live, engaging content that’s fit for purpose.