My wife told me I could tell ya’ll this.

We can’t go out to eat without carefully selecting just the right place to sit. It’s not that she is OCD (well, maybe a little). She just knows that aesthetics matter! She’ll tell you that it may even change the taste of the food. 

Ever seen the show “Restaurant Impossible?” Design is almost always a part of every transformation and path to success. 

So it is with your business. 

Like it or not, people will visit your website and then judge you based on how your site looks and feels. 

You wouldn’t show up to a new client meeting dressed poorly, would you? Every second a really good client could visit your businesses’ home page. Is that going to be a good thing or are they going to spit you out of their mouth?

So let’s dive into some ways that you can address this before it costs you too many customers. 

What are some principles of good web design that you can be implementing today? 

Purpose.

Before we start making color palette decisions and tweaking font styles, let’s step back and ask, “What is the reason my website exists?”

I know, I know, to get customers. But, dig deeper. What kind of customers? Who are they? What do you want them to do? Why do you want them to do it? Are you going to use the website primarily to generate leads or to inform? Maybe both?

Before you load the website down with all the products, services and features of what you do, make sure you step outside of what you want to be said and make sure it what they want to hear. 

Then, don’t complicate it. Simplify. Keep the main the main thing. 

Color

If you are like me there is nothing more stressful than painting. I mean, there is a zillion colors out there and it gives me a headache trying to choose from every shade and variation of blue. 

Have a good logo designed and work from there. Make sure the colors you choose reflect your company personality. Visit some websites of companies like yours and pick out some examples to show your web designer. 

Are you bright and cheerful company? Are you formal? Modern? What is the culture like of your business? How do people dress?

There is no perfect color combination. You’ll know it when you feel it. 

Make sure and keep the color selection to no more than 5 colors. 

Layout

The F-shaped pattern is the most common way that users can scan the content of your page. Eye-tracking studies have shown that what people usually look toward is what is at the top left of your screen. Good web design works with people’s natural viewing patterns. 

Make sure that you keep a good consistency with line justifications. Don’t alter how things are centered. If you choose to “left justify” a piece of content for example, make sure you do this with similar sections found throughout your website. 

Visual Hierarchy

The arrangement of design elements is important. This is done either by size, color, imagery, contrast, typographically, whitespace, texture and style. 

You want to create a focal point to show your visitors where the most important information is. 

Content 

Don’t forget that “content is still king!” See my post on this subject. 

Mobile-Responsive

Most people will be on their phones when they visit your website. You will want to make sure that your website is compatible with all devices.

When designing your website remember to keep the interests and experience of your traffic in mind and A/B test occasionally to see how you might make changes that will lead to more conversions and leads.