Why are design and user experience important when building your website?
Have you ever tried looking for a product or service online?
Did you feel frustrated after that experience?
Probably yes, because there are too many problems while purchasing goods and services on the Internet: unclear product descriptions, hidden costs, incomplete information about terms of purchase, service, and delivery.
“Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.”
– Steve Jobs.
When customers are searching online for products and services it is an everyday reality, that it is often hard for them to find the right information, to help lead them to make a purchase decision.
Create engaging experiences.
A user-friendly design does not only make it easier when investigating products and services online, but it also makes them attractive as well!
In other words, UX (User Experience) helps to create engaging experiences which suit your customers’ needs perfectly.
So when reviewing your business website, consider if it is user-friendly, is it engaging the customer addressing what they are looking for and ultimately leading to them submitting an inquiry or placing an order?
Reviewing, addressing and optimising the user experience design on your website means that the inconveniences mentioned above can be eliminated or at least reduced with user centered design.
The benefits of a well-designed website.
People tend to judge your company, service, or product not only by the price or quality of what you offer but also by the perception they derive from your visual appeal online.
A well-designed website can solve some of the problems mentioned above as it improves usability for consumers and gives them a pleasant experience when visiting your website.
A few examples of how user interface design helps:
- Provide clear descriptions of products;
- Provide relevant information that addresses what the customer is looking for; and
- Build trust through knowledge and social proof.
If you haven’t realised already, your website is the centre point of your marketing efforts, which engages and attracts new customers.
Modern technology enables us to create engaging experiences, using interaction design, which elevates your brand!
With design usability an important focus, it significantly improves user’s experience and loyalty towards your company or brand.
with us today.
Why is website user experience so important?
You need to make sure you and your customer are on the same page – or at least, they get what you’re saying.
In general, successful companies in any industry understand their customers better than their competition does – because if you don’t know how to solve the problems of your target audience, why should they choose your company over another’s?
User research helps address the user needs.
We often think our customers are like us; but quite often that is not the case. So instead of making assumptions about what will work for them or having ideas that coincide with our own interests, we need to gather information from those individuals – by analysing market research, running usability tests, and so forth.
The information gathered is then used to define your target audience, and figure out what they want as well as how they interact with the world. You might be amazed at what you find!
Visual design to address user flows.
This technique is also called empathic design, which relates to the idea that human beings are emotional creatures – so we can rule out random clicks or purchases without much thought.
Using this method allows us to understand our customers on an emotional level, not just a logical one. Empathy works by helping product managers and designers to get inside their users’ heads and see the world from their perspective – understanding their needs and wants in order to make better decisions for them that will provide real value for them.
Asking these questions helps us figure out what type of information architecture (IA) and user flows will be the best for your website:
- What types of content do you want to present on your site?
- Are there any current solutions that people are using to find similar products/services in the industry?
- What kind of messaging is most compelling, or can help generate revenue from your target audience?
This helps us determine what topics and information should go where on a page – along with how they should be presented.
One thing I often hear when customers ask me about our UX design process is “I don’t know what to write or where to start, can you help?” That’s a very complex question to answer – so let’s break it down a little bit by explaining storytelling.
Storytelling provides a better user experience.
Business storytelling is the use of a narrative structure within your company’s communications, collaborations, and marketing initiatives.
Storytelling may be evident in websites that allow users to explore by clicking around and reading content, storytelling is used to create user engagement and it builds trust through providing relevant information that helps lead the user to a solution.
The user interface (UI) is not just about how something looks. It’s about the structure, content and the experience of digesting that content. It’s about ensuring people have a positive interaction with your brand or product, ultimately address the user’s needs leading them to becoming customers.
Informational architecture an important part of user experience design.
A huge part of what makes a website work well is information architecture. Information Architecture is how you arrange that content on the page – which should provide users with easy navigation, quick access to important resources or data, and be intuitive.
Good informational architecture breaks down complex concepts into small bite-size pieces so they’re easier for people to understand – helping them not only navigate the site more easily but also providing value at each step along the way (which will build trust in your business or brand).
Overall, when someone visits your website – you want them to get exactly what they need—and nothing else.
Let's imagine what a well-designed user-friendly website is, using shopping at a store.
Imagine that you are walking through a shopping centre.
Wouldn’t it be great if you could save some time and jump directly to the shop, where you would like to do your shopping?
The most important thing in this scenario is NOT about speed! It’s all about convenience. I mean, who doesn’t want to spend less time just standing around in-store or wasting their precious time finding a convenient shop?
So why do people leave websites without purchasing anything, submitting an inquiry, or even worse – never coming back again?!
I think there can be several reasons for that: unclear product descriptions, hidden costs, incomplete information about services you offer… I bet you could probably name a few too.
Maybe customers don’t really know what they want and leave your website because they are being indecisive about what they really need.
And everybody can be indecisive sometimes! But this is on you to provide the information they are seeking, leading them to the solution they need – which is your product or service.
Another reason is that maybe the customer simply doesn’t trust you to provide a product or service they are interested in when comparing you to your competition online.
In any case, UX design lets us create engaging experiences in order to improve user experience (i.e. cut down or eliminate the problems mentioned above), increase conversion rates, and decrease shopping cart abandonment rate.
The three main components of UX design: user research (to see who your customers are), information architecture (to figure out how people find the content they need or want), and design & user experience (the recipe, so to say, for creating a great customer experience online).
How to create useful and relevant content.
Visitors come to your website seeking information and/or a product or service.
If you haven’t already, try asking your customers what information they are looking for when they visit your website. Then think about how users find their way around the website: is it intuitive? How easy is it for them to find that content? Are there any obstacles in the process?
Finding this out before designing the structure of your pages will streamline navigation in future content development.
Search engines favour websites with high-quality content because crawlers want answers to their queries – and fast! Engaging, relevant, and easily found valuable content is a must! Only then will Google be happy placing you above your competitors.
How can a well-design website user experience help you and your business?
As already mentioned above, we live in the age of technology where we have never had a more informed buyer.
So if you’re still wondering how UX can benefit your company, here are some stats from Adobe research: 67% of consumers expect a positive brand experience across all channels.
This expectation applies to more than just websites – it extends to apps, social media, and even email marketing.
Here’s a study from the Baymard Institute which shows that only 40% of websites are mobile-friendly. The report also shows that each second of load time delay results in a 4% loss in conversions for e-commerce sites.
So if you haven’t built a website yet, now is the right time to make it responsive and more user-friendly! And don’t worry if your current website already exists, because there is still an opportunity to create a UX strategy for it (in terms of simple User Interface changes) or redesign it entirely to improve customer experience and increase your conversion on-site.
F.A.Q.
What makes a good website user experience?
There are a number of factors important for UX design, but the main ones are; easy navigation (also keep in mind that mobile-friendly websites are essential since more people are browsing the internet with their mobile devices than ever before), clear visual hierarchy (for viewing pleasure and to quickly find what the user is looking for), great content (including images, videos, and lots of text where appropriate)… just to name a few.
What should a well-designed website include?
It should be easy to scan through the content and quickly find what you are looking for. The most important information should be highlighted and placed in a prominent place on the page (e.g. product images). It should also be easy to find your contact details or “call to action”.
How do I create a website for user experience?
The first thing you should do is plan your website strategy. Do market research, create personas for your target groups, and start listing the pages you want on your website. This will help you to get a better understanding of who visits your site and what exactly they are looking for.
How does web design affect user experience?
To put it simply, a great user experience starts with web design. You can have an amazing idea and material for your website but if the implementation is bad, your idea will fall flat on its face before it even started. Not only that but you might frustrate potential customers to the point where they go elsewhere.
Summary
UX might be an interesting and rewarding thing to do if you care about your customers and are looking to leverage your website to grow your business.
So don’t hesitate – get started today with UX/UI design and good luck!
What next?
If you’re serious about your business, it’s time to get a website design that reflects the quality of the products and services you provide.
We can help with everything, a done-for-you service. Which allows you to focus on your business while we build your business online to connect you to your customers.
Plus, our team is ready to make sure your site looks beautiful no matter what device visitors use or how they connect, from desktop computers to mobile phones!
Click here to learn more about our website design services.
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is VITAL when building a website.
Optimising your website. If you own a website, you want...
Read More
Top 5 ways to improve website speed
The importance of website speed. We live in a fast-paced...
Read More