They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. There is no place where this statement is more accurate than the Internet. Your website must be beautiful in the eyes of those who visit it so they will stick around, browse, and possibly, convert from being a visitor to a customer.

Here are seven reasons why website design matters:

1. First Impressions

You only get one chance to make a first impression. On average, that chance is about 3-7 seconds. If your website’s design is attractive enough to draw the user’s eye in during that time, you’ve made a positive first impression that will likely lead them to return in the future.

2. Building Your Brand

If you have an established brand, you likely have branding materials that go with it. Logos, colors, fonts, and other design elements can make your brand stand out. Make sure these elements are displayed on your website so users can associate them with your business.

3. Enhancing Usability

The more user-friendly your website is, the more likely users will visit it. User-friendly website design means making information easy to access through navigation menus and buttons. A website should have as much navigation as necessary to support the goals of the organization.

Usability isn’t just for a few navigation menus and buttons. It includes white space, attractive calls to action, using images wisely, well-designed and written headlines, responsiveness, and mobile-friendliness.

4. Fostering SEO

What do Search Engine Optimization and website design have to do with each other, you ask? A lot! Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, affects how your website is found and shared by search engines.

Various web design elements have an impact on how search engines rank your page. Therefore, your site will be more likely to be found on search engines by using the most SEO-friendly design techniques. Examples of these design elements include image size and the use of headings in the text.

5. Speed Up Your Site

Your website’s visitors have a need for speed. By using the right design elements and optimizing images, you can ensure that your site loads quickly on all devices. That way, your visitors will be more likely to stick around as they tend to stay on faster loading sites longer. Site speed can also impact your SEO and your ability to be found by users in the first place.

6. Keep & Convert Them

If you want your client to purchase your products or services, you’ll need them to stay on your site long enough to complete the transaction. With accessible navigation-related design elements like drop-down, footer, and sidebar menus, they’re less likely to bounce by checking out other pages on your site and more likely to convert by following your calls to action.

Therefore, you need to ensure these elements are not only visible but attractive. Calls to actions are important but so are your unique value propositions, as they’re what makes you different. It’s also okay to check other pages of their website because those pages should also have a unique value proposition and call-to-action buttons.

7. Stand Out

These days, everyone is online, including your competitors. Make sure your website stands out from theirs. Having a professional-looking website can make a difference to those who are visiting your website and your competitors’. You will stand out to customers who see that if you take care of your website, you’ll take care of them.

Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but your customer’s eyes are the ones that matter when it comes to your website design. If you don’t have an eye for design, don’t worry! Contact Links Web Design for a free website consultation today.

Links Web Design is a Website Design Company in Bangor, Maine, and Fruitland Park, Florida.