Business storefronts can make strong impressions on people, some of which they will carry for the rest of their lives. Think of the toy store that you loved to visit as a kid, the hobby store you frequent, or the grocery or hardware store that’s become your go-to retailer for the last few years. The products and services you encounter in those places are likely not the only reasons you come back; you may also like the layout, the atmosphere, and how easy it is to interact with the staff for customer concerns.
In the age of the digital economy, that experience is not only limited to physical business storefronts. It extends to business websites as well. An appealing website can do the same things as your actual brick-and-mortar business locations (if not more): bring customers in, invite them to shop or book a service with you, and build strong relationships with them based on positive engagement with your brand. For that reason, it’s worth investing in your website and making sure that your digital customers feel valued and at home in your web space.
What can you do to make your website more engaging? Here are some tips from the people at SearchWorks, a web design agency in the Philippines that can help you build a website worth returning to again and again.
Invest in Mobile-Friendly Website Design
The first thing you’ll want to consider is just how many customers will be accessing your website via a mobile or tablet screen. To make sure that your website works, looks good, and loads quickly enough on mobile, consider pooling your resources towards mobile first web development. The result: an audience that’s happy to engage and spend lots of time on your website, even when they’re on the go.
Make Sure Your Website is Easily Navigable
Next, work with your web designers to ensure that your site is easy to navigate. Opt for a simple and clean layout and find the quickest and most intuitive ways for your customers to get from Point A to Point B on your website. This will allow them to get the information they need from you and, in turn, compel them to engage with your business further.
Don’t be tempted to add any fancy flourishes on your navigational menu if they don’t serve a good purpose. Otherwise, they’ll make your customers feel lost and confused when they’re on your website, and they won’t be in a hurry to come back.
Be Thoughtful about Design Elements Like Colors and Fonts
It can also be tempting to overload a website with flashy fonts and colors, but being extra thoughtful about your design scheme is key. Above all, choose fonts that are readable and professional-looking as well as evocative of your brand. Go for colors that are easy on the eyes and that can be intuitively associated with your brand identity, as these can make both your website and your overall brand story more memorable to customers.
Strike a Visual Balance between the Typography and the Graphics
A website is more than just a repository of content for your business. As such, it shouldn’t be designed to overload customers with either text, graphics, or both. You and your web designers should make an effort to strike a balance between your website’s typography, or its text element, and visual elements like graphics and video. Paying attention to things like line breaks, space between characters and paragraphs, graphics and video layout, negative space, and the positioning of each call to action (CTA) will improve your website’s user experience (UX) and make it a pleasure for customers to engage with you.
Put Appealing Content on Your Web Pages
Customers are drawn to businesses that have a good idea of their target audience and the audience’s most pressing problems and concerns. Good web content can allow you to show how seriously you take your customers and their interests, plus why you’re the best partner, producer, or service provider for their needs.
For example, if you run a business that deals in pet products, you’ll want your brand to resonate with pet owners. You can do this by putting high-quality pet-related content on your blog or posting videos of happy customers and their pets on your testimonials page. Other elements of your web design may have brought your customers to your website, but excellent content is what will make them stay and share insight from your business with other people.
Add Social Media Plugins to Your Website
Lastly, knowing just how much of your target audience is on social media, you should make it easy for them to connect to the most popular social media channels through your website. It will work in your favor to add social media plugins for sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. That way, your customers can actually continue their engagement with you on their preferred platform, for example by sharing a piece of news from you with their Twitter followers or sharing a product page of yours with their Facebook friends.
Work with SearchWorks.PH to Strengthen Your Web Presence
SearchWorks.PH is one of the leading full-service digital agencies in the Philippines. We know how to synergize web design with other elements like content and SEO, and we will use our knowledge in these fields to help you build your business value through your website. Contact SearchWorks now to learn more and to connect with our web design experts.
