The rules of web design are constantly changing; every year the paradigm shifts. The following web design tips are essential for any website that wants to be taken seriously in 2020.
Streamline Your Homepage
Your website’s homepage is your virtual shop window. When a new visitor to your website first lands on your homepage, they will instantly form an opinion of your business. Whether they form a positive opinion of you or not is entirely within your control, you just need to produce a homepage capable of eliciting the desired response.
The less cluttered your homepage is, the easier it will be for first-time visitors to your website to find their way around. Websites that are not easily navigable rarely last very long. If visitors have a hard time merely finding content on your website, the chances of them engaging with any of it meaningfully are significantly reduced.
Keep your homepage as streamlined and as free of clutter as possible if you want to create the best possible first impression.
Ensure Your UI Is Intuitive
A streamlined homepage will make your website easier to navigate. A core component of that is an intuitive user interface. Websites should not be difficult to use; they shouldn’t require any special skills or knowledge to navigate. There is no sense in making your website any more complicated to use than it needs to be, sticking to a simple UI will lead to better engagement and a higher conversion rate.
Maintain a Professional Appearance
The impression that your website leaves on first-time visitors will be key to determining your long-term viability – no website can survive very long if it doesn’t make visitors feel welcome. If your website is supporting a separate business, the appearance of your website will determine attitudes towards your business – if your website is unprofessional then it stands to reason that your business will be as well.
Even if your website is a standalone venture and there is no associated business, it is still important that visitors don’t take one look at your website and instantly assume that you’re an amateur. If your pages are cluttered, full of extraneous features, or generally don’t look very professional, people are more likely to turn their backs on you than become loyal visitors.
A professional-looking website is something that any designer should be able to achieve. Even if you aren’t confident in your own design abilities, you can buy WordPress themes that will leave you with a professional-looking website at an easily affordable price.
Don’t Make Mobile an Afterthought
Most people browse the internet from their mobile devices. In fact, most of us will have had the experience of loading up a website on a mobile device, only to discover that it doesn’t properly support mobile. This usually means we instantly leave and move on to the next website on the list. You need to put the mobile experience at the very heart of your design philosophy.
Web design is a fast-moving field. Building a good website means not only being able to predict future trends but to understand where past trends currently sit. A website with a professional feel is within every designer’s hands, provided they are willing to put the work in.