As women we have learned the importance of making a good impression when it comes to appearance. It comes as no surprise that first impressions count when it comes to websites as well.
That’s right – your website has to grab your visitors with its aesthetics, hold them captive with engaging content, and convert them from browsers to buyers with irresistible calls-to-action.
What Makes Your Website Boring?
Slow Load Time
Technology today allows us to connect to a friend on the other side of the world while flying hundreds of miles up in a plane. At the same time, the attention span and patience of today’s consumers are shrinking. The last thing anyone wants to do is to wait 30 seconds or more for a page to load. Slow load times are just not cool and annoying!
Crazy Colors
Modern consumers prefer simple, classy and engaging sites. Check out your top 5 sites and you’ll notice that they’re probably white with a maximum of two other colors. The K-I-S-S (Keep It Simple, Smartypants!) principle is the key to a gorgeous site!
Boring Logo
A logo brings it all together. The colors should flow from your logo into your design and the rest of your offline and online marketing materials. Logos should also connect with your target market and speak to them. It should be memorable.
Poor Navigation
Does a visitor need to boot up her GPS to find her way around your site? That’s a sure sign that your site is not flowing like it should. When someone visits for the first time, she should be able to find exactly what she’s looking for in a maximum of 3 clicks.
Common Irritants
Does it irritate you when you are bombarded with pop-ups before you can access anything on a website you’re visiting? It’s surprising to see that even wildly popular news media and magazines’ websites use this tactic to target new subscribers.
Now that we know what makes a site boring….
How Do I Make a Good First Impression with My Website?
First, you need to know that people judge your business based on the appearance and functionality of your homepage within 7 seconds. It’s worse than salvaging first impressions on a date. Unlike a date where you are present and can turn the embarrassment into a joke with your witty charm, your website is a sitting duck. Unless you use these tips to charm visitors with the best possible first impressions:
1. Optimal Content Placement
Place all the most important content and functionality above the fold. If a user has to scroll down to read more or access something, it’s best to place it on another page altogether. By doing this, you will increase exposure while upping the engagement levels.
2. Creative Color Contrasts
Contrasting important sections with a different color draws attention, but use contrasts that complement. Let your images blend in with your template design too, for the best flow.
3. Quality Content
The quality of your content can make or break the best web design. It can destroy the professional impression you have made, one small error at a time. It’s imperative to get a professional content writer to write your content for you. They will help you hone in on your target market, create a tagline, and help you find your sweet spot in your message.
4. K-I-S-S
Always keep it simple, particularly your home page. A homepage that is overwhelming or confusing will cause visitors to leave your site in favor of a competitor’s. You can still have a beautiful website, even if you keep it simple. Less is indeed more in modern web design.
Visitors’ first impressions of your website depend on both the technical and aesthetic aspects and by combining the two, you can create a professional impact on potential buyers.