No one in their right mind can deny the importance of web design for marketing modern businesses.
The chances are that you would struggle to even get off the ground if you didn’t have a decent web presence from day one. Many companies use an online presence to build hype before they launch.
This should all come as no surprise given that, according to Web Credibility Research, an astounding 75% of company judgments are based off websites alone. Websites matter significantly these days, and it would benefit you to pay attention to that.
That said, there seems to be some confusion as to the purpose of an online presence. Countless articles advise on the importance of website design above everything. Website design for marketing matters.
Your page needs to look good to send the right message to visitors. It also needs to be easy enough to use with simple designs which keep customers coming back. But, that’s about where design itself ends.
If your website isn’t serving your needs, existing advice may convince you that a total redesign of your visuals is necessary. If you make it look good, you will see more sales.
Or, will you?
There are a few different problems with this way of thinking. A total redesign is a risky thing for any company, and aesthetics may not be the best reason to go ahead.
For proof, let’s consider what can often wrong with a website redesign for aesthetics.
The Cost
Redesigning a website isn’t cheap, especially if you’re focusing on appearance.
Not only will you need to pay a consultancy to take care of the web stuff for you, but you also must pay a team to redo your logo and so forth. Even if you took care of these things yourself, the process would end up costing in lost productivity.
It wouldn’t be cheap. That’s not to mention the fact that your products may suffer neglect for the duration of this project.
If you aren’t careful, that could see your company struggling even more than a website which wasn’t working.
The Risk of Going Offline
Let’s not forget that a total website redesign often means going offline for at least a short period. If you rely on your online customers that could mean shutting up shop in the middle of the day.
If things didn’t go according to plan, you could even find yourself offline for an untold time. That could lose you a great deal of custom, and damaging your reputation. 88% of online customers are unlikely to return after a bad website experience.
We would say that finding your site offline is as bad as it gets. That means saying goodbye to customers who you might never get back.
All because you wanted your website to look better…
The Cost of Losing Branding That People Recognize
The riskiest thing in any redesign is losing branding that your customers recognize. Even if it isn’t attracting new customers, your existing audience will know and trust your logo and design. As soon as you take that away from them, you risk losing the audience you’ve built until now.
If you change your color scheme and logo design, people may not recognize you when you relaunch. You will then have no choice but to start back at square one.
That can be frustrating, and it could even leave you failing if you’ve now got a large team of employees behind you. This seems like a hefty price to pay for the sake of a better-looking page.
Still Not Seeing Any Improvement
Let’s say that you look past the above downsides and embark on rebranding. What happens if you then don’t see any improvement
How would you feel about spending all that money, only to notice that customers care little about visual web design? Because that happens often.
Design is most important from a functional standpoint. As long as people can use your page, they won’t care much about how it looks. Redesigning for visual purposes could see you going through a whole load of hassle for not much reward.
When you consider it like that, it’s clear visual design isn’t half as important as many would have you believe. But, does that mean you’re doomed to a website which doesn’t pull the crowds?
Not at all. It merely means you should focus more on redesign which stands to increase your sales. More often than not, you’ll find that it pays more to focus on basic web design for marketing and put your energy into the following crucial factors.
Create Killer Content
Forget appearance; content is THE king of your website. Get this right, and people won’t care a lot about what background color you chose for each page.
In fact, content matters so much that you may find basic web design for marketing is your best bet at seeing success. That’s because subtle visuals ensure that all eyes are on your content.
And, this is where you sell yourself. With killer content, you can really win people around to your cause. You can sell products like never before, and give the story of your company to gain loyal customers.
You can also explain what you do, and why people should buy from you. Get this right, and you may even find you can increase sales without having to redesign you actual website layout. Given the pitfalls discussed above, that’s a goal well worth working towards.
The question is, how do you get your content right?
Your struggles so far suggest that you’re doing something wrong, and this may be it. Content is like customer service in a real store.
It needs to do the best job at selling what you have on offer. It also needs to look the part so you can impress every customer who steps through your door (or onto your website).
One option here would be to outsource written content to ensure quality. By turning to a company who create website content every day, you guarantee they know what they’re doing. They’ll be able to create effortless content which appeals to your target audience.
They’ll also ensure a certain level of quality in writing provided. Given that this isn’t a total redesign, you could even take care of content yourself if you wanted. Using grammar checkers and doing research beforehand should be all it takes to perfect every paragraph on your page.
That alone could save you a fortune, and keep current customers happy while also pulling a new crowd. Fantastic content works wonders for SEO. Google and other search engines favor sites with informative and well-written relevant content.
You can bet that a focus here will take a whole load further than an appearance-based redesign. It’ll be a much easier task, too.
Focus on Increasing Sales
Sometimes, a redesign is necessary. If you aren’t making enough sales, drastic action is required. In that instance, it pays to focus your web design for marketing on improving sales rather than appearance.
This is the best way to ensure that all the downsides of a move like this are worth your while. It also pretty much guarantees you’ll see rewards for your efforts. Instead of changing colors and logos, consider which additions could secure more deals.
Given how crucial mobile usage is now, your first step here should be to focus on a responsive design. In the modern world, any website should be accessible on whichever device customers choose.
This is a fantastic focus for a redesign and could boost sales no end considering that around 52% of website traffic comes from mobiles. With luck, you may even find that changing your page isn’t necessary.
By hiring a company who can take of this for you, you may create a responsive design out of the website you already have. Even if they have to tweak things, this is a worthwhile cause to change for as it has verifiable results.
Your sales could skyrocket in no time.
Equally, a focus on sales could see you redesigning so that the spotlight is on your shop. Something as simple as including critical pieces on your home page, or providing a button straight to your store on entry would work well here.
You may also want to add a way to prevent shopping cart abandonment. Including pop up reminders or time limits can go a long way here. You may also find that including these things in your design goes a long way to increase sales.
All these are valid redesign efforts, and they could make much more of a difference than just making your page look good.
Grow to Build More Leads
Sometimes, merely growing what you have is the best chance of seeing improvements. Your most obvious option here would be to include a blog section on your existing page.
Business blogs are invaluable in modern operations.
They create connections, keep customers coming back, and provide a subtle way to sell your products. Including one of these on your website is far easier than a complete redesign would be.
You needn’t shut up shop or even mess around with your site as it stands. Some simple HTML will mean that you can include this without worry, and sit back to enjoy the rewards. Blogs shouldn’t be advertisement heavy.
Don’t just post articles which sing the praises of your products.
Instead, find relevant but less apparent ways to sell. Advice articles, for example, allow you to mention products without boring your audience.
Another way to grow what you’ve got to build more leads is to install pop-ups onto your page. These could provide feedback which you can use to improve.
Or, ask for email addresses to create a newsletter.
This is a fantastic website addition as it keeps you in customers minds for longer. And, again, including it is as easy as adding a small section of code to your existing website.
Takeaway to See More Sales
With this increased focus on web design, most websites have a lot going on. We’re talking epic graphics, advertisements, and even links which takes hours to load.
The problem is that 53% of customers will leave your site if it takes longer than three seconds to load. By piling all those visual effects onto your page you could well lose sales. A better redesign idea would be to take things away.
By stripping back to basics, or what’s sometimes known as a ‘static design’, you could see a drastic increase in sales. That’s because a basic website loads faster than any other. Customers won’t have to wait long at all to see what you’re offering.
And, you can bet that impresses far more than showing off your graphics prowess.
In Conclusion
It’s difficult to ignore the temptation to redesign your site for the wrong reasons. That’s especially the case when you look at some of the stunning sites of your competitors.
But, a redesign isn’t something you should take lightly. Do it for the wrong reasons, and there’s no chance you will see your money back soon. You may even find yourself in just as bad a position as when you started.
Any redesign, be it big or small, should focus on sales above all. Think, too, about how you could improve what you’ve got to save yourself the hassle. By growing your existing site, you stand to see increases with no need to undertake a redesign at all.
That’s the best of both worlds, and it’s something you should consider before charging ahead for the wrong reasons.