For any business it’s incredibly important that a website functions in a way that helps your audience. After all, the whole point of a website is to “help” customers and clients find and ultimately make contact with your business. Pivotal to that end is extending a platform for information gathering that is not only sufficient for conveyance of the information your customers or clients need, but just as important is providing an experience that is user-friendly.
Several factors inhibit the success of a business website in performance of its core function and when you’re planning yours, you must keep these in mind to optimize any chance of conversion. After all, you stand no chance of conversion if your customer bails.
Keeping in mind these key reasons for providing a good user experience design when planning your business website will help ensure your website enjoys healthy traffic flow and conversion, giving you the best chance for success.
- Websites Should Respect Customers’ Time: When a web visitor enters your site, they are spending their most valuable resource researching your brand: their time. You want to respect that by providing the most efficient way to deliver the information they need to educate themselves about: (1) the industry you’re in; and (2) the value of the product/services you offer.
Anything less than seamless access to a succinct description of your services, rates and value can send a visitor packing within mere seconds. Web visitors have notoriously short attention spans. If your website doesn’t provide a layout that clearly delineates the information they need or the pathway to finding it, they will be onto the next website before you can say “bounce rate.”
- A Good User-Experience Builds Trust: Making a sale online has everything to do with trust. You have to remember that in order to move the needle with any customer/client, they have to trust your brand. And providing a confused, frustrating experience for customers who want to learn more about your business and how its products and services meet their needs is the worst way to build trust in your brand. It’s more likely to convey the impression that their experience working with your brand and purchasing your products may prove just as frustrating.
- It Keeps Customers/Clients on Your Site: A good part of browsing online when it comes to buying has to do with sourcing the right fit for your needs. People jump from site to site the minute they deem a business inadequate for their needs. Providing a good user experience helps to retain the attention of your visitors and, therefore, extend the opportunity to make the case for your brand. The longer the visit, the greater the likelihood of conversion.
- Good User Experience is, Duh, a Good Experience: Think about a brick-and-mortar business. When customers enter and can’t find a single thing they want and a customer service representative is nowhere to be found, how long do you think it will take before they exit stage right? The fact is, the same attention to providing a good in-person experience should be applied to an online experience. The better experience you give your customers (online or in person), the more customers you’ll retain, the more word-of-mouth your business enjoys, the more well thought of your brand will be and in the long run, the quicker your brand will grow.
If you’d like to learn more about how good user experience design can help your business, or would like to learn more about how a great web design can help your business grow, contact Proctor Digital at 773.664.5819 and speak to one of our consultants.