Do you want to take your business online but do not know how to design a good website? You may also be looking for ways to give your site a new look. If that is the case, you need to learn the most important factors to consider when designing a website.
A website is an important link between you and your customers. Therefore, you need to design it in a way that captures the expectations of your customers. You may have to carry out a little research about their preferences or look at what your best-performing competitors are doing.
This article presents the six crucial steps that you should follow to come up with a website that propels your business to the next level.
1. Work on the Domain Name
This is the online address of your website, and so, it is what customers will be using to find you. It is important to choose a domain name that is related to your business or your products. You should also make it easy to remember because some people will want to type it directly into the address bar instead of searching.
When it comes to domain names, short domain names perform better than long ones. And it is because they are easy to memorize, and they also point directly to your business. If you are going to use hyphens and numbers, make sure that they do not make the domain name too complicated.
Another important thing when it comes to how to design a website is to choose a domain name extension. Some of the most common extensions are .com, .net, .org, .edu, and many others. To be sure of better performance, choose a reputable extension.
2. Check the Web Host
A web host is the online home of your website, and it determines everything related to performance. Choosing a scalable host is the right way to go because you want your business to grow along the way. If you feel like you are going to outgrow their platform soon, you should look for another alternative.
A web host should be secure because they will be responsible for storing your data. If they expose your website to other parties, your business will be in trouble.
Some of the factors that you should consider when looking for a web hosting company include the following:
- The uptime
- Phone and chat support
- The user interface
- Server security
3. Create the Right Content
Content is one of the most important aspects of a small business website. You have to make sure that the content is what the readers want to read. In addition to that, you want to make sure that it represents what your company offers.
After creating content, you need to come up with page layouts. You have to decide where to place images, videos, graphics, and texts.
Optimizing the content for search engines is another important aspect of designing a website. According to recent statistics from leading search engines such as Google, the largest percentage of web traffic comes from search results. This shows that you cannot afford to overlook the importance of SEO.
4. Optimize for Mobile When Designing a Website
Nowadays, most people carry out most of their online activities on their smartphones and other mobile devices. People are always on the go, yet they have to shop, pay bills, learn, and communicate through the internet. That is why you should make your website mobile-friendly and allow users to do everything regardless of the devices they use.
If you talk to any reliable web designer, they will tell you that the web host is the one that determines the suitability of a website for mobile phones. For instance, some will allow you to edit the site on your phone the same way you would do on a computer. Therefore, you need to talk to the hosting company about this before choosing their package.
5. Choose an E-commerce Platform
Remember that you are creating this website for business, and so, you want to use it to sell products in addition to interacting with your customers. You need an e-commerce platform to handle the selling part. Features such as a payment option and a shopping cart are needed.
When customers come shopping on your website, one of the things they care about is their financial information. If they are paying through their cards, they want to know how secure their financial information is. That is why you have to choose a secure e-commerce platform that is also trusted by all.
6. Choose a Content Management System
Managing digital content is a crucial part of online business, and you have to take it seriously even when you want affordable web design services. Lots of content management systems are available, and they charge different fees. If you are creating a website for a small business, you may want to go for a less technical system.
Go for options that provide you with a lot of tools that help to run your online business. You need a wide variety of plugins, themes, and other tools that extend your website’s functionality. You also should choose one that is easy to use, even for a beginner.
Get a Professional Web Designer to Build Your Website
After knowing everything that concerns designing a website, you should embark on the process of finding a professional to help you do it. The best designers know how to create sites with the best domain names, web hosting services, content management systems, and e-commerce platforms. They will also optimize your website for mobile users.
If these web design tips have helped you learn how to design a website for business, read more similar articles on our website.
