In today’s highly digitalized world, your business site can be a very powerful tool. Considering the fact that it acts as a 24/7 salesman, it has the potential to become the central part of your marketing strategy.
However, digital trends are changing rapidly, which can make your site look outdated and old. If you have this problem and you can’t afford a complete redesign, there are ways to improve your site to make it more useful and helpful.
1) Keep Your Pages Consistent
Having consistent website pages means making everything match, including coloring, design elements, spacing, font choices, image choices, etc. In order to provide users with a positive UX, they need to know that they’re on your site at all times.
Radical changes in the design from one page to another can create confusion and make people lose trust. According to users, an inconsistent website can lower the quality of the products or services a company is providing in their eyes.
2) Be Mobile-Friendly
These days, it is absolutely essential that your site is optimized for mobile and easy to navigate on any type of device. Google already penalizes websites that aren’t mobile-friendly, which makes it even more important to ensure your site’s responsiveness.
If you aren’t certain whether your site is optimized for mobile, you can use Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test.
3) Use Software Localization
According to a report by CSA, out of 3,000 consumers, 60% said they would never or rarely buy from English-only sites, and 75% of them said they want products to be offered in their native language. In other words, if people can’t even read your website, it won’t be used.
Software localization and UX go hand-in-hand. Properly localized content should feel as if it were created for users regardless of what language they speak. Correct localization which preserves the original functionality and ensures readability will help users understand your product or service, which in turn guarantees a better CX.
4) Improve Your Speed
Waiting for a website page to load for too long can be very frustrating for your website users. Today’s consumers are expecting fast and easy access to content worldwide on multiple platforms. If this expectation is not met, they will not hesitate to leave. In fact, research has shown that an extra 5 seconds of loading time can increase your site’s “bounce rate” by over 20%.
So what can you do to optimize your page speed? Begin by compressing your images before uploading them onto your site. You can also try to reduce redirects, leverage browser caching, improve server response time, etc.
5) Use Images Wisely
When people first visit your site, they can easily spot if you are using non-personal stock photos. This can make your site look generic and non-unique and, as a result, decrease trust in your brand. Stock photos are not capable of reflecting your brand and your products. Only your own actual photographs can do that while also speaking clearly to your potential customers.
Make sure to use high-quality, relevant images placed strategically to support the website content and to allow users a visual break from the text.
6) Use Attractive CTAs
CTAs (calls to action) that are clearly marked help users navigate your website more easily and find what they are looking for quickly. When creating your CTA buttons, think about the psychology of color. Different colors evoke different feelings and messages, so think about what kind of message you want to convey (intelligence, experience, sustainability, trust) and pick your colors accordingly.
You should also consider the words you use. They should include a word or a verb that encourages the user to take an action. Make your words action-oriented, time-sensitive, and bold.
7) Use White Space
White space is essential to good website design because it makes your website feel modern and open. It also makes your content more legible while at the same time enabling the users to focus on the elements surrounding the text. In fact, research has shown that white space around text increases user attention by about 20%.
However, it should be noted that white space does take space, and having too much of it might be replacing some important information. The key is to find the balance between what’s most important to communicate and surround that with enough space to highlight the text or image.
Conclusion
Essentially, a good user experience is all about leading your website users to the information they are looking for while at the same time removing any obstacles that might be on their way. The seven UX tips described here will help you identify the key elements that make your website useful for both you and your target audience.
