Tips and principles for the perfect website design

So you are looking to improve your website design? In this blog we will give you some tips and design principles to help you get the most out of your website and bring in more traffic and sales. When it comes to an amazing website you want your customers to know exactly where to navigate and show what you do within seconds of clicking. 

Use readable and web-friendly fonts

Your website needs to be readable to everyone. As much as you want to add that fancy font that stands out, you need to think about all users and whether it is readable. You need to account for visually impaired who may struggle to read and ensure this font can feature bold and regular font weights. 

The ‘F’ Pattern

The way humans consume content will be the same as they read and write. Most humans are taught to read from left to right and top to bottom. This goes the same for the design of you website. The ‘F’ Pattern is a term used in design to show how people consume content. This means your design needs to implement this, placing the most important and visually pleasing elements on the top left and work your way down. A good example would be to place the header of your web page on the left with an image on the right. This way a user will read the title first then see the image that relates to this. 

Use negative space or white space

Now you may see white space as a negative when it comes to design but it actually goes a long way. Apple use this a lot to spread out their content and put emphasis on the parts that matter. The user is instantly drawn to the important image and title rather than loads of different elements on the screen. 

Overly complex pages can overwhelm your users which can put them off. Keep it simple, show only the important parts you want them to see. Also keep your navigation to a minimal as navbars with lots of options can be confusing for the user and stop them finding what they came here to see. Remember that a users attention span is very short and they do not want to be spending their first minute finding out where to go and what you actually do. 

Consistency is key

Your website should have a theme. Base your design around a colour scheme, a brand and a user flow. If you have pages that look completely different to others or you have Call to actions (CTAs), images, fonts or colours which do not fit a theme then you are going to put users off.

 Your branding is vital when it comes to the perfect website design so think about your brand and build a set of brand guidelines. This will determine your fonts, colour pallettes, imagery and style. 

Call to actions (CTAs)

Ultimately you want people to complete an action on your website, whether that is to enquire about your services, purchase a product or simply learn. This is why CTAs are so important. They give your website the functionality for the user to complete the intended task. These need to stand out. Make sure they shout above the rest of the design give them a stand out colour, which matches your branding of course. 

You also need to make sure the text is straight to the point, for example contact us, get a demo, enter now, add to cart. The list goes on. Another important thing to add is primary and secondary buttons. So a lot of websites use this by adding different designs for these button states. So for your primary you could have a bright, bold button and be the main action you want the user to do. For the secondary you could use a more of a subtle design which still stands out but does not use bright colours and has less meaningful actions. These work well for buttons such as Read more, Learn more and Pricing. You can see how we have used button states in our landing page above.

Images speak a thousand words

Images are important, they not only tell a story they show your user exactly what your content is about. People really like to see and visualize what they are reading. This is why picking the right Images should be well thought through. Another thing to note is the images need to be consistent accross your website. If you are using Infographic vector images then you should try to keep this the same style and design accross the board. 

Another thing to think about when it comes to Images is your users like to see your products in use by real people or to know that the company behind the website are real people. This builds an element of trust between you and your customers. Try using images that show your team, your director, your real life customers. 

Hicks Law

In the design world we call this Hicks Law. This is the principle that the more choices the user can make the more time it takes them to make a decision. You want to reduce this, try and give the user a very minimal amount of choice. Usually no more than 3 choices are best. The more choice the more chance of overloading your user and making them click away.

User Experience (UX) and User Interface (UI)

Although they are different they come hand in hand. Working out how the user will use your website and how this will look is very important when coming up with a website design. You need to ensure that this is simple to use, the user needs to understand how your website works and where they need to go. Your navbar, CTA's, content and images need to tell a story. They need to be designed with all types of users in mind. From young people who have a lot of experience on the internet to People who are still in the dark ages. You want to fit around you target audience and keep the flow of the site seamless for the user. 

Avoid large amounts of text

People need to consume information right? Well there are ways to increase the users experience without using large amounts of text. You need to break the content up into sections. Segment each section using images, videos, infographics to really explain what the text is about. This will give your users a more enjoyable experience and allow them to stay on your website and increase the chance of them becoming a lead or a customer. Everything about your website needs to be about the end goal, what exactly do you want this customer to do. It is your sales funnel and you lead generator.

Responsive design for mobile 

Your website design needs to incorporate mobile and other devices. Everyman and his dog has a smartphone or tablet nowadays and they are becoming the more popular device to surf the internet. When it comes to your website this needs to be a priority. Not only do you need to make sure your website can be viewed on these smaller screen devices but you need to make sure the content of the website and the flow is still the same. The way someone would navigate a website using a desktop computer vs a mobile is completely different. For example one uses a mouse and one uses a touchscreen. This is going to impact your design in many ways, so having a responsive design can give you that edge over your competition and allow users to experience your website and become a customer or lead. 

We can help your business succeed online

If you are looking for someone reliable to design your website and bring in more traffic, sales and leads then you have come to the right place. You can find more information here. Alternatively we can have a chat today and discuss how we can help you business.