A well-designed website serves as both a calling card and a business generation tool. While it may be tempting to simply throw up a basic web template, putting some thought into how you present your business online can help boost customer interest and retention. Here are some reasons why it’s important to have a well-designed website.

It Gives People a Great First Impression

In the world of online business, it’s critical to make a good first impression because the way you represent yourself on the internet can be as important as how you do so in person. Keeping this in mind, you want to make sure your first impression on the World Wide Web is as strong as possible, and effective website design is a great way to leave an awesome first impression.

You want your website design to convey a few core elements of your business, such as being:

• Professional. It should consist of well-balanced and consistent color schemes and graphic design elements.
• Organized. Your site should be free of clutter and guide viewers’ eyes in logical directions.
• Confidence-inspiring. Your site should clearly outline what you do, why you do it, and what makes your product or service superior to that of the competition.

It Can Improve Your Search Engine Results

You can use your website design to improve search engine results by featuring keywords in specific sections of your site. For example, you can populate your blog pages with keywords, making sure you incorporate them in the titles and headings of each blog. You can also feature keywords in articles or links you have on specific pages of your site, such as those that showcase industry news or events.

The images you choose in your design can contribute to your search engine results as well. You want to choose high-quality photos, videos, or art, and it’s best to tag them with appropriate keywords, as well. For instance, if you run a real estate company and have an image of a two-bedroom condo, you can use that phrase within the tag in the picture’s HTML code. This tells search engines what’s in the image. In this way, if someone includes the term “two-bedroom condo” in their search, there’s a higher likelihood of your page coming up in the results.

It Sets an Expectation for Customer Service

If you put a lot of thought and attention into your web design, potential customers may feel you’ll do the same thing for them. By the same token, a website that is quickly slapped together may leave a bad taste in the mouth of your target market.

Carefully choosing the content on your website can also help boost the impressions customers get regarding the kind of service you’re likely to provide. For instance, you may want to try some of the following ideas:

• Include a page dedicated solely to customer service.
• Add widgets that give customers the opportunity to chat live with a representative.
• Include testimonials from satisfied customers within the first couple of folds of your site. A fold refers to the portion of your site that appears on the screen of a visitor.
• Use plenty of images of real human faces on your site. This conveys the impression that people, not systems or solutions, are the most important element of your business model.

It Gives Your Customers a Reason to Trust You

Visiting a disorganized, cluttered website of a business is like walking into a grocery store that reeks of rotten food. Regardless of how good your products and services are, customers may not trust that you’ll deliver on your promises. The connection made between the design of your site and your dependability — fair or unfair — can pull clients in or push them away.

On the other hand, it’s easy to inspire trust with an effective design. Here are some helpful tips:

• Include a variety of reviews, as well as a few that only give you 4 out of 5 stars. This shows you’re not filtering out all of the negative feedback. When possible, incorporate a widget that connects your site to a real review site.
• Make the product or service you offer crystal clear at the top of your site or on its landing page. If customers have to guess what you offer, they may be less likely to trust what you say.
• Be very specific regarding the industries you serve. You want customers in your niche to know that you have what they need. Even if you want to expand your offering to include more industries in the future, only include the ones you service right now. You can always add more later.

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