Anyone can slap together a website using a website builder, but if you want to create a meaningful website, you’ll have to put more effort into it. Visitors aren’t interested in websites that don’t speak to them – in fact, 80% of people say that they’ll be more likely to do business with organizations that provide tailored experiences.
In this article, we’ll talk about how to design an easy-to-navigate, meaningful and visually appealing website that speaks to your target audience by providing a ton of valuable information. Read on to learn more!
Start with Your Target Audience
Everything meaningful on the internet has to start with the target audience, so the first step is to become better acquainted with who your audience is and who your customers are. You’ll need to dig deep to find their pain points and how your product or service helps solve their pain points.
The way you do this is by conducting research and then using that information to build customer personas. Delve deep into each personality and find out what you have to offer that your competitors don’t. Lean into that in the next stage.
Here are some of the tools you can use to learn more about your target audience:
- Google Analytics. Nearly every marketing agency uses Google Analytics to find insights into who their customers are. You’ll learn where they’re from, which pages are the most popular, which have the least traffic, the page that they first enter the site on, and the page they leave the site on. You can even discover audience interests and affinities – you just need to know where to look!
- Social media tools. Whether your company is also on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or YouTube, you can gain additional insights into how your posts are performing and the types of people who are looking at them. This can help you tailor your content toward the audience better – on your social media channels and the website.
- Other analytics tools. If you feel like Google Analytics doesn’t quite give you what you’re looking for (or you simply want to add more tools so you can gain better insights), there are several other analytics tools
Make the Web Design Visually Appealing
No matter who the user is, they won’t want to stay on your website if it looks outdated or isn’t visually appealing. Your website should be clutter-free, with plenty of white space to provide a break for the eyes.
Here are some other things to keep in mind for your web design:
- Keep important information “above the fold.” The term originated with newspapers. In the digital era, when we say “above the fold,” we mean that the most important information should be what the site visitors see first (before scrolling down).
- Add imagery/videos to keep it interesting. Commercial photography and professional videos on your website will do a better job of telling your story and making your brand more personable and effective.
- Be strategic with elements. There should be a visual hierarchy to everything you do. Keep in mind the size and weight of the images.
- Keep accessibility in mind. A website won’t be as meaningful if a person with low vision can’t read it. Make sure there’s a good contrast, reasonable letter size, and readable font.
Make it Easy to Navigate
Your website should be easy to navigate via mobile or computer. Since nearly half of website visitors are on mobile, it’s extremely important to keep smaller screens in mind while designing.
Here are a few ways that you can do that:
- Link the logo to the home page so that users can always return to it
- Put important links in the footer, including contact info and social media icons
- Create an anchor menu so visitors can navigate vertically through the site
- Use responsive design for a mobile-friendly website
- Make the menu easy to find
Pack Value Into Your Content
SEO is important, but everyone has landed on a blog or website that promised one thing and gave them another. This practice is frustrating for readers and makes people distrustful of your site and brand. Be sure to generate valuable content on your site in the form of blogs. If you use a keyword, be sure to explain it enough that your reader can get some value from it.
Are You Stuck? We Can Help!
Here’s a quick review of what you’d need to do to create a meaningful web design:
- Research your target audience and create buyer personas
- Take pictures and record videos to place on your website
- Add your logo to the site (or get one if you don’t have it already)
- Make the website visually appealing and easy to navigate
- Include valuable content, keeping SEO and the reader in mind
If all of this seems overwhelming to you, we can help! At Matcha Design, we have been doing all of the above for over 30 years. We know how to help you create a brand that will resonate with your audience, take professional photos, and develop a stunning website that showcases who you are to your customers. Contact us today if you’d like us to get started on our website
