As we all know, the pace of overall functioning has changed and everything happens via the Internet. Through it, we do business, shopping, we have fun, talk… It all comes down to sitting down at the computer, typing in the desired keyword, and getting the desired information as soon as possible. Then the logical solution is for your web page to be in the results of Google search engines and to present the offer of your products or services directly to potential customers in that way.
Websites are of great importance for both the employer and the users of the services. In order for a company to improve its business, a well-made Internet presentation, i.e. website, plays a big role in that.
Four Marketing Channels in a Website
Nowadays, the websites of successful companies are their advertising and the path to better presentation to consumers/users. While creating a website, in addition to the design itself, you must do quality SEO (search engine optimization), that is, primarily choose the right keywords from the business domain. Without it, you will be hard to find in search engines, and the website will not fulfill its purpose.
There are four marketing channels in a website that have torn down the ‘wall’ between users and companies. They allow users and companies to choose how they want to connect, and this greatly contributes to the company’s marketing:
- Content – Providing information should be useful and simple.
- Search engines – Optimize search results to provide the user with the right and highest-quality information in the fastest way.
- Social networks – Information is shared faster and communication is simplified.
- Brand – By interacting with the brand, you increase the awareness of potential users about the brand itself.
These four channels are crucial in the creation of a website, and therefore in creating the marketing success of a company, and they are an integral part of the design.
What Rates the Site as Successful?
The question here is what rates the site as successful? To answer that question, we must first see what kinds of sites exist:
- Forums
- Blogs
- E-commerce
- Personal sites
- Company presentations
- News sites
- Communication and dating sites
- Portals
- Educational sites
- Specific sites
As you can see, there are different goals of the sites depending on their purpose. One will say that the main goal and success of all sites is to constantly increase site traffic. However, that is the main goal of almost all of the sites listed above, but not all of them. For example, an e-commerce site can have an exceptional visit (due to, say, good advertising), but if there are not enough sales through it, then it can rightly be said that the site has failed.
The elements on the website must be harmonized with the needs of the site and, of course, they must be harmonized as simply as possible. Every visitor wants to get the desired information in the shortest and simplest possible way. The web designer must find a balance between the available content and the elements he will present. It is necessary to make the best possible presentation in the simplest possible way, with elements of the company’s visual identity and well-coordinated content, which will leave a positive impression on the user.
A beautifully designed website attracts visitors, and a visual impression is certainly the first thing a visitor will notice when visiting a website.
What Distinguishes a Quality Website Design and Basic Parameters for Creating One
- It should be appealing and attractive while, at the same time, enabling users to perceive or use the content. The design should be a link between the user and the information on the page.
- It should enable users to recognize each page as part of a larger whole
- It should allow users to easily and intuitively use website navigation
- It should make the most of the rules and principles of web usability and visual design
Basic parameters for creating a quality website:
- Alignment of elements on the page – refers to the alignment of the upper, lower, side, or central parts of graphic and textual elements on the page. Aligning the left edges of the elements, e.g. titles, subheadings, and texts on the page contribute to a better perception of the connection of the elements and a clearer and more readable visual structure of the page.
- Element balance – This means the size of the title, text, color of the elements and the text itself, and the position of the objects on the web page.
- Proper color selection – This applies to the proper selection of background, text, and title colors. Numerous studies have shown that certain colors come hand in hand with associations (subconsciously we create a connection between colors and emotions). In addition to provoking emotional reactions, colors can also create new connections with the brand. Also, color has been shown to enhance memory. In the case of brands, it improves their recognition by 80%. For example, the fact that Facebook is blue is recognizable to everyone and is a symbol of that brand.
A bit more about colors: The choice of colors should be consistent. If you use too many colors, you are at greater risk than if you use too little. If you use too many colors, the page can look chaotic, so the elements you want to highlight can be easily lost and the visitor finds it harder to reach the necessary information. On the other hand, too many colors are tiring for the eyes, meaning that tired visitors will leave your site quickly, and that is by no means your goal. That is why it is recommended to run two or three colors throughout the design. One dominant, another that will subtly follow it, and a third that will be used to highlight key elements on the page.
How Should Elements on a Website Be Redistributed?
The uniqueness of elements refers to the fact that the different elements of the composition must interact with each other.
Contrast is the placement of various graphical or textual elements that are used to highlight things on a website. This refers to the contrast of colors between elements and the type and size of fonts – for example, serif fonts such as Times New Roman for titles and sans-serif fonts such as Myriad Pro for content, as well as the colors of the fonts themselves.
The consistency of the elements allows the perception of the affiliation of the elements to the website and the visual stability and identity of the entire website. For example, the navigation (menu) should always be in the same place on each website, i.e. at the top of the page. The search should also be located in a visible and conspicuous part of the site. The most effective email call-to-action button or the subscribe button (the best way to gather the subscriber list effectively is via specialized tools for that, one of which is Benchmark) should be prominently placed above the fold (in the upper half of a web page) and be present there regardless from what device users are opening your web page. And so on.
If all these elements are inconsistent, the user loses interest in further searching on the site and exploring it, and leaves the page. It is not the goal of any company for a user of their website to leave the page without receiving the requested information.
As TV commercials used to play a leading role in presenting a company, today a website becomes an indispensable part of a company’s image. In fact, companies aim to improve their businesses and attract as many users as possible, and that is the goal of a good website.
