We are living in the age of quick solutions. Need a kitchen appliance? You can buy it online in a few clicks and have it delivered to your doorstep the next day. Want to book a hotel room? Some websites compare prices and find the best deals for you. And let’s not forget how easily you can find a date these days.

High-performing websites make it a breeze for us to do all these things. We’ve come to expect nothing less than a fantastic user experience when we go online, and that’s why it’s so crucial for businesses to have a web design that is both aesthetically pleasing and easy to use.

In the first few seconds, visitors decide whether they will stay on a website or not. If you don’t get the user’s attention in those few seconds, you may have lost them for good. So, what are the must-dos for creating an engaging web design that will make users stay on your site?

Work with a Professional:

The three pillars of a website are:

• Design – determines how easy-to-use and visually appealing it is
• Development – establishes the functionality of the website
• Optimization – makes sure the site is search engine friendly

These are the technical aspects best handled by a professional web design agency. They will have a team of well-trained designers who know the latest trends. So, don’t risk your business’s image with a do-it-yourself design or working with an inexperienced freelancer.

Since Colorado is becoming a hub for entrepreneurs, owing to the affordable cost of living, you’ll find no shortage of web design agencies in Denver. Do your research and find a Denver web designer you can trust to create a website that represents your business well.

Analyze your Competitors’ Websites

The low cost of online business has led to an increase in start-ups and small businesses in recent years. It means it’s not going to be easy to break into the market and stand out from the crowd, but it’s not impossible.

Insights into what’s working well for your competitors can help you to improve your web design and give you ideas of what you could do differently. Several tools, such as BuzzSumo and SimilarWeb, can help you research your competitors.

Evaluate the UI/UX of the website. Is it easy to use? Is it visually appealing? What is the first thing on a webpage that catches your eye as a visitor?

You also want to analyze the content of the website. What kind of language are they using? What kind of tone do they have? How often do they update their blog?

For an eCommerce website, check whether the payment process is smooth and easy. Are there any abandoned shopping carts?

This analysis will make it easy to decide what you want to add or omit from your yet-to-be-designed website.

Keep it Simple:

When it comes to web design, less is more. Your visitor is eager to find a solution, and if they have to search through a maze of pages and links, they’ll likely give up and go to a competitor’s site.

So, what are the basics of a simple yet effective web design?

• An easy-to-use and understand layout
• Intuitive navigation from one page to another
• Concise and clear text that is easy to read
• Relevant and targeted visuals

A well-designed website will have a positive impact on your business. It will communicate professionalism and competence, instill confidence in customers and help you close more sales.

Make Sure Your Website is Mobile-Friendly:

Your users will judge your website (and business) based on its mobile compatibility. It is estimated that mobile users will spike to 7.49 billion by 2025. About 52% of them are less likely to do business with your company if they have poor user experience on mobile. Considering these statistics, a website that is not mobile-friendly will lose many potential customers.

A mobile-friendly website is easy to use and view on a mobile phone or tablet. It has a responsive design, meaning the layout and content adjust automatically to the screen size.

Ensure your website loads quickly on mobile devices, as users will likely abandon a slow site. Use Google’s PageSpeed Insights tool to check your website’s loading speed on mobile and desktop.

Use Engaging Copywriting

Your website’s copy is one of the most important elements of its design – after all, it’s the words on the page that will ultimately sell your product or service to visitors. Ensure your copy is well-written, free of errors, and engaging enough to attract people’s attention. Use persuasive language and strong calls to action to encourage users to take the next step.

Your website’s copy should also be consistent with your brand’s overall tone and messaging. If you’re a fun and quirky company, ensure that it comes across in your website content. Conversely, if you’re a serious and professional business, your website should reflect that.

Optimizing your titles, meta descriptions, and blog posts for SEO is also vital to ensure that your website ranks high. Use tools like Google AdWords Keyword Planner and Moz Keyword Explorer to research the best keywords for your website.

Make Use of Visuals:

Science has shown that humans are highly visual creatures. We process visuals 60,000 times faster than text. So, it’s no surprise that incorporating visuals into your web design is essential to engage visitors.

Images, videos, infographics, and charts all give results. Use only high-quality visuals relevant to your brand and products or services.

While stock photos are readily available, avoid generic and popular images. Original pictures with a size of 900-1000 pixels in width and 600-700 pixels in height will give better results.

Including visuals breaks up large blocks of text and makes your content more digestible. But avoid stuffing visuals. It can make your website appear cluttered.

Conclusion:

What’s your vision for your website? Whether you are creating your first website or redesigning an existing one, these tips will help you create an engaging web design. We can’t emphasize enough the high responsiveness, visual appeal, and strong calls to action to ensure you land those customers!

Of course, this isn’t an exhaustive list – there are many other essential elements to consider when designing your website. But these must-dos will give you a good start.