What makes a great website?
If you’ve landed on this article, chances are you’re looking to get your website built or you’re revamping your current website. When choosing some who will create your website, it’s important that they keep these things in mind.
Great design
First and foremost, a great website has a great design that speaks volumes about the brand it represents to the customers it wants to attract. Great design can mean different things to everyone, beauty is in the eye of the beholder after all, but it must be easy to use and with high contrast in colours to keep it easy to read. A great design is also something that is on-brand with the company, so it suits the company or person it represents and uses the colour scheme seen elsewhere in their branding.
Responsive first
A responsive website is a VITAL in 2021, see, I even put it in caps. That’s how important it is! More and more people are switching to mobile, most web traffic is on mobile! You must cater to their needs. Responsive design is design that works for devices of all sizes, whether your audience is on mobile, tablet or desktop. Your website should respond to the user’s screen size, platform and orientation.
Optimise your website for speed
You may have the most beautiful website, but that’s no use if it takes 30 seconds to load. Your audience will likely hop onto a competitors website before you can say optimise. Not only does it risk damaging your SEO, you also risk alienating your audience. I will follow this article up with optimising your website for speed, but for now, make sure your image file sizes are small and you’re using lazy loading where possible.
No Broken Links
Have you ever been on a web page and clicked on a link, yet the link doesn’t work? It’s incredibly frustrating!
All links, whether in your blog or on your website, must work otherwise you risk losing customers. It shouldn’t be difficult to navigate your website. Having broken links can lower your rank on Google search results as it negatively affects your user experience.
To check links, try using these free tools Dead Link Checker and Broken Link Check
Simple navigation makes a simple life
Having an easy to use navigation not only makes it easier to use your website, but it can also increase conversions too. All of your important website content should be within 3 clicks, 2 if you can. The easier that your audience can find what they’re looking for, the better!
It should also be easy to find how to contact you, whether it is by email or phone. Keep a link easy to see on each page. Email and phone are not the only way of contacting you so don’t forget to add any social media accounts that you have and are active on.
Alternative Text for images
Image alternative text is often overlooked yet is vital for those who are using screen readers, and also for Google to understand what an image is. It is also what shows up if your image doesn’t display properly, whether due to an error or slow internet speeds. It should be filled with a short description of what the image is with as many keywords as you can, but still keeping it legible for those with disabilities.
These are the key points for making a great website that stands out to your ideal customers. If you’re looking for a website revamp or perhaps a brand new website for your business, get in touch with me on kelly@kellyculver.co.uk and we can talk!