5 Elements of a Successful Website
In an increasingly digital society, it is vitally important to market yourself online. This is not as simple as finding a domain and making a basic site; successful companies need visually pleasing websites, quality content, and clean, efficient design. Skigital provides personalized and comprehensive services to businesses looking to step up their marketing online. Here are the 5 elements every successful website must have.
Optimized Content
The best content on your site is attractive, objective, and purposeful. This is the backbone of any website. Optimized content builds trust between you and your clients. Building trust online comes from your diction, or word choice, and the way in which content is presented. Objectivity towards your content makes your audience more readily engaged and trusting of your product, and comes from the first rule of storytelling; don’t tell someone to buy something, show them why they need it.
74% of consumers trust educational material from companies that does not explicitly tell them to buy the service or product. This shows the importance of quality diction that does not seem pushy or overselling (Think bright, jagged word bubbles that scream “SALE!” or “BUY NOW!”), which frustrates customers. If they are on your website, they have an intent to buy your product or service. Educate them on why you are superior rather than pressuring them to buy.
Optimized content is also highly personalized. Businesses’ credibility relies heavily on online reviews in 2019. 85% of consumers are satisfied once they have read up to 10 online reviews for a local business. Step it up even more with user-generated content. This can range from user testimonials to actual user-suggested or created products. This encourages open discussion about your business and ensures quality in the eyes of your clientele.
Skigital offers services that can increase your online customer appreciation, such as responses to 4 and 5 star reviews, social media marketing, promotion and event planning, and much more.
Quality images
A picture is worth a thousand words. Once again, show, don’t tell. A strong graphic can make or break a website, and Skigital can create professional, branded graphics for your site. This is not only limited to graphics and banners, however. The overall design of your site can make the difference between outstanding and outdated with the proper implementation of quality layouts and images. The best images are the ones that call to action using rhetorical appeals, while at the same time informing your audience of your business. These appeals can be emotional: a happy couple eating at your restaurant. They can be trust-building: “9 out of 10 doctors recommend your supplement.” Or they can be logical: Our cell service has 5 times more coverage.
Images are persuasion. Jason Nazar of Forbes asserts that, “What we see is more potent that what we hear. It may be why pharma companies are now so forthcoming with the potentially horrible side effects of their drugs, when set to a background of folks enjoying a sunset in Hawaii.” Your physical impressions matter. Call it shallow, but we call it effective.
Lead capture
You only have one chance to capture your viewer’s attention when they find themselves on your page. Similar to quality images, a lead capture denies the old adage that you should save the best for last. If you want to capture attention, show your audience your best content first. Most readers never make it to the bottom of the page. Again, these captures should be informative and appealing. Accessibility should also be stressed for a good lead capture. This means making your website easy to navigate for people with disabilities.
Quality calls to action
When we say not to tell people to buy your product, we don’t mean you should avoid this completely. The best sites make your audience want your product and think that it was their idea. This is what an effective call to action can do. It doesn’t say, “buy our clothes,” it says, “look at how great you look in our clothes.” A strong website has a purpose and objective that it is trying to serve. Your site should primarily inform the viewer of its purpose, and persuade the viewer to check you out, to subscribe to a newsletter, or share your site with others.
Clean looking and easily navigable
The big design word of 2018 was “minimalism.” Popularized by an online blog, aptly titled, The Minimalists, minimalism is described as a lifestyle of simplicity and detachment from material possessions. In a much broader sense, minimalism can mean a lot of things. Minimalist aesthetic can range from grayscale furniture and home decor to a simple, uncluttered wardrobe, but each minimalist design have a few things in common. They are simple, uncluttered, and purposeful. The same should be applied to your website. A good site looks clean and feels navigable.
A minimalist website is the trend to follow into 2019. Take the sites of big tech companies, like Apple and Google. Their sites prominently feature pictures, with clean white, black, or grey backgrounds and easy to read text. The best way to clean up your website is to ask yourself if you need a large block of text, or if a simple picture or graphic would get the same message across to a viewer. The best backgrounds are generally ones that are not too flashy or bright.
If the design is what draws a viewer in, navigation is what keeps them there. The basics of good navigation start simple but are not always easy to implement in a website. A great site should include a navigation bar at the top or side of your site which can take a reader to any page. The links on your site need to be working and take you to the correct place. Concise and descriptive labels are also key not only for visitors but for search engines. If your labels are descriptive, they will be more likely to show up when entered into a search engine.
At Skigital, we are a team of professional online designers that will ensure your website is working for you. This means website and social media design that follows these principals and ensures your website is the best it can be. Be sure to follow these principles when creating your site.
