Will your digital footprint affect how people react to you?

As people, we like nice looking things, we can’t help it, it’s only human to associate attractive things with other positive attributes. Whether this is good or bad is beside the point, we are attracted to the attractive.

When served up a beautiful looking meal at a restaurant, the assumption is that it’s also going to taste great.

If walking by a coffee shop with a nicely branded shop front, you’ll assume they serve good coffee.

You get the point.

This is just as relevant and important in the digital arena, your website has thousands of competitors depending on your field, who will offer exactly what you’re offering and are just a click away. If these websites look and navigate better than your website, you’ve lost.

Your website is your company’s online face; your potential client’s first impression of your business lies here. Doing things by half on a website will never end well, there are lots of great freelancers out there but there are also lots of inexperienced freelancers who are looking for quick cash. So take the step and spend what is needed as this is one thing that just can’t be saved on.

Your website should:

1) Look Amazing With A Great Design

The design of your website is one of the most important aspects.  No matter how well the site navigates and converts, if your site is outdated and has a cramped design it will hinder your performance.  The first step is making your website attractive.  This is such a simple step, which if followed will gain you traffic and lead to new business.  Make sure to always check out the design agency or freelancer’s prior work before engaging with them, do they have an impressive portfolio with websites that you find attractive? Have they had enough experience to take on your project?

2) Be Clutter-Free

Part of making your website look attractive is to avoid too much ‘stuff’; a modern, slick and clean site will make your business stand out in the digital realm, it will also naturally make for a more user-friendly experience. White space doesn’t have to be filled.

3) Look Great On All Screens

If your website isn’t responsive then you are starting on the back foot.  Your site has to look great on mobiles, tablets and desktop.  Google now ranks websites from a ‘mobile first’ point of view, so if your site isn’t great on mobiles (clickable elements too close together, different sections not stacking up, or the screen sliding from side to side) then you are going to be marked down, giving an opportunity to your competition to improve their Google position by jumping above you.

4) Be User Friendly

People make decisions quickly.  Your site needs to be easy and smooth to navigate through.  The user needs to be able to seamlessly move from page to page and clearly understand where to find what information.  Avoid long blocks of text which take time to read through.  Break things down into simple bullet points or sentences.

5) Use Images/Videos

Images and videos are very popular in websites today, they allow the user to instantly connect with a theme/topic without having to read through the text.  This rich-media allows for an emotional connection that text doesn’t, however using images and videos within websites needs to be carefully considered.

The chosen images/videos have to be appropriate for the business and relate to the subject matter.  They also must be of high quality and have a thought out composition. Using poor quality images can ruin a well-designed website, so use caution.

6) Contain a Blog

Having a website with an active blog is one of the key elements of good SEO.  Maintaining this may be tricky but it’s so worth it.  Including links to your business’s social media platforms is also essential, Google needs to know that you’re active and sharing on your blog and social media platforms – so keep it up!

Do you have more?  Get in touch with us underneath to let us know what you thought about our tips and if you think there should be any others.

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