Using a Website Design Company
As the digital age continues to stretch and the pandemic pushes more and more companies online, having a beautifully designed, highly functioning website has never been more important. A strong digital presence can make or break a business. And while you might be tempted to get creative inhouse and stick to a low budget, here are 20 reasons why you should choose a professional website design company.
1. Consumer expectations are high
Let’s kick things off with some stats. According to a new study by Salesforce Inc.
✔ 63% of consumers said the way they obtain goods and services ‘transformed’ during 2020 and 57% said the same about the ways they engage with companies.
✔ Consumers now interact online with companies 60% of the time and offline 40% of the time. In 2019, the split was 42% online and 58% offline.
✔ 88% of the 12,000 consumers and 3,600 business buyers surveyed expect companies of all kinds to accelerate digital initiatives due to the pandemic and 83% expect retailers to provide flexible shipping and fulfilment options such as buy-online-and-pick-up-in-store.
✔ 68% of consumers said Covid 19- elevated their expectations of companies’ digital capabilities.
✔ 60% said the pandemic is changing their relationship with technology.
So, what does this mean for your brand? Well, it means more people are interacting online. It also means you’ve got to raise the bar as with expectations through the roof and competitors nipping at your heels, ‘basic’ just won’t do.
2. A mediocre website is not good enough
These days, you can’t get away with a poorly designed website. Every element must be carefully thought through from the look and layout to the imagery and text. That’s why many companies call in a web design agency to make their slice of the web stand out. Not convinced? Want to do things yourself? Then keep in mind that:
✔ 93% of people have left a website because it didn’t display properly on their device.
✔ 90% of people have left a website because it was badly designed.
✔ 93% of people have left because a website didn’t load quickly enough.
Ultimately, consumers are not only fussy but they’re impatient too. And rightly so as there are websites out there that deliver. So, don’t settle for second best.
3. A website is your brand’s hub
Having a multi-pronged digital strategy is important in today’s world. From apps to social media channels, there are many ways to engage with consumers, but if you don’t have a website, a piece of the puzzle is certainly missing. A website is your brand’s hub; a place which brings all your marketing efforts together. It should be your ultimate point of reference and the thing you focus on first before branching out.
4. First impressions count
It takes about 50 milliseconds (that’s 0.05 seconds) for users to form an opinion about your website. This determines whether they like your site and will stay or whether they can’t stand it and will leave. Consumers will judge you and they’ll judge you fast, so website development must include fast load speeds, eye-catching information, appealing visuals, white space around images to make them pop and many other elements you may not even have thought about unless you’re a professional web design company. Considering first impressions are 94% design-related, making your website stand out at a glance is a must.
5. A professional website will improve trust
Linking to your website from social pages is a good idea. Printing your URL onto offline marketing resources is also on point. But if consumers then land on a poorly designed website, they’ll lose trust in your brand – even if you’ve done some pretty fantastic networking. Your site really needs to look polished and professional with crystal clear imagery, hyperlinks that work and quality content that’s perfectly arranged and easy to read. Think of it this way. You wouldn’t be happy walking into a retail shop with signs thrown all over the place and products all over the floor. So, why should consumers put up with navigating through a messy, lazy website?
Keeping things organised and beautiful to look at will also work in your favour in terms of ROI. Let’s use the same analogy regarding the shop. If you have to sift through mountains of items to find what you’re looking for, you’re likely to leave. If everything is professionally presented, you can simply take it and pay. Design experts will help you grab the attention of consumers and take them on an exciting buying journey.
6. Designing a website is hard
Designing a website is easy – if you know what you’re doing. If you don’t, it can be a logistical, time-consuming and frustrating nightmare. It takes more than knocking up a bit of copy and gathering a few images. Designing and running a website is a complex task that includes writing code, testing features, trialling usability, tapping into consumer psychology, look at heatmaps to discover content placement hotspot, checking the competition, analysing clickthrough rates, writing interesting content – and more.
7. Designing a website is time-consuming
Website design is not something you can palm off onto the content writing or marketing team. It’s time consuming and shouldn’t be done as a ‘side project’ by someone lacking the relevant skills. What’s more, due to changes in user behaviour, Google algorithms and trends, managing a website is an ongoing task that requires constant attention. If you don’t have the time or knowledge, web design agencies can help.
8. Websites need to be SEO optimised
Creating a website is one thing, but will it rank in search engine results pages (SERPs)? That’s the ultimate goal and for this to happen, you need to think about search engine optimisation (SEO). SEO is the practice of increasing the quantity and quality of traffic to your website through organic search engine results. It requires careful research and implementation, with common practices including:
✔ Keyword research
✔ Keywords placed in URLs, H1/H2 titles, image alt text, meta titles, meta descriptions and throughout the body of the content. But not too much as this could be considered keyword stuffing which is a Black Hat technique.
✔ Image resizing for the web
✔ Creating and refreshing content
✔ Populating blogs
✔ Link building and internal linking
As you can see, SEO in itself is rather complicated but a web design company will do it all for you and take away unnecessary stress.
9. User experience is key
If you’ve ever tried creating your own web design, you’ll know that developing a top-notch website is far from easy. An online site requires plugins, codes, headers and images, all of which can improve the user experience. A web agency knows exactly where to put certain features including CTA buttons, forms, contact information, social media tabs and such like in order to deliver a website that’s attractive, dynamic and intuitive. Web design companies will also monitor the user experience and keep track of data to ensure their design is up to scratch. If the data tells them that more people are looking to the top right of the homepage than the top left, for instance, the design can be altered.
There are lots of other elements that can also improve the user experience. This can include compelling content that takes users on a journey while drawing them closer to your brand. Company videos featuring key members of staff can also improve authenticity while ‘how-to’ and ‘explainer’ videos can help consumers see the relevance and value of your products/services. Websites that are interactive are also a nice touch, but design teams can piece together a UX-focussed site that works.
10. Website development involves psychology
Emotion is a strong motivator that guides human actions. Colours and fonts can influence how consumers engage with your website. For example, everyone knows that green is connected to ‘go’ so this can be a good colour for call to action buttons. Orange is also said to encourage immediate action and is associated with inexpensive items and impulse decisions. Red also works well especially when it contrasts against the background colour. Popping CTAs directly below relevant products or text is a good idea as it’s where the eye will naturally look next, therefore encouraging people to take action.
11. Professionals provide a stress-free, accessible site
Even if you know what needs to be done, you might not be able to get the look and feel you want using typical web builders. Making your site work the way you want can be frustrating, particularly if you find certain files or media are not supported by the platform you’re using. Professionals help to avoid these bumps in the road. The process is streamlined, and your brand will shine. Whether you want to pop in an explainer video or have images that need optimising, a web design company will do it all.
12. Professional deal with glitches
Professional web design companies make sure that there are zero technical glitches with the site and perform all the necessary tests to ensure that your site is working perfectly across all browsers. They’ll incorporate virus protection and think about overall website design safety to avoid hacking attempts, data theft and other issues that have the potential to grind your company’s everyday activities to a halt.
13. Professionals offer a reliable web design
Website problems can and do happen. But solving them is key in order to minimise downtime. Website design companies develop sites that are reliable and consistent. And if something does go wrong you won’t have to wait for hours for help or pay thousands for an emergency service call.
14. Benefit from mobile-first web design
The majority of users now access Google Search with a mobile device. For this reason Google has given priority to mobile-first indexing which means that the mobile version of a webpage is used for indexing and ranking, to better help mobile users find what they are looking for. Professional web design companies can help you not only develop a website that works across multiple devices, but one that takes indexing updates into consideration.
15. Have a competitive advantage
When you employ the services of a web designer or company, you will be able to take on competitors with confidence. This is because web designers will help you stay ahead of the game by using the latest technologies and following the latest trends. They’ll also prevent you from falling into bad habits such as Black Hat SEO tricks which include keyword cramming or spamming.
16. Convert more leads
Professional web design plays a key role in lead conversion. If a site looks great and is easy to use, people will naturally want to spend more time checking it out. Time spent on a website, in turn, is directly related to lead conversion.
17. Enjoy high-quality work
Web design companies retain talented staff members who have all the necessary skills to make your website a success. From design experts to SEO whiz kids, you’ll benefit from a wide range of combined talents to create one brilliant package. Note that even if you decide to build a website yourself, you may need assistance with SEO optimisation down the line. So, it’s often a good idea to find a company that provides all web design services rolled into one to save you any hassle. After all, a website without a decent SEO strategy will have a hard time drawing in a crowd.
18. Get a website fit for purpose
Every website is different and built with purpose. An e-commerce website is meant to create loyal customers, for instance. Therefore it needs to be bug-free, user-friendly and easily accessible via all different kinds of gadgets, including mobiles. This will ensure people keep coming back to browse, shop and share your content. When you work with a professional web design company, you can be sure your brief will be met. And with added input from those in the know, you could get something better than you expected.
19. Experts will listen to your needs
When you work with website experts, you can express your wants and needs. You’ll have the opportunity to provide a detailed brief and set out your expectations. That said, don’t be put out if you receive some kind of pushback from companies. Web design experts know what works and may be able to offer a different, more effective solution than you had in mind. Free-flowing discussions can lead to a remarkable final product.
20. Customised websites are unique
Many reputable website design companies offer customised website designs. This means they’re unique and easy to distinguish from sites built using pre-designed templates. What’s great about this is you won’t have to fit your content into a specific model but can instead let the experts pop it where it’ll work hardest and achieve the best result. Everything from images to banners, graphs, charts, infographics, videos and text can be repositioned to work in your favour and give your site the edge.
Contact Whitefish Marketing today, a professional web design company ready to take your company to new digital heights.
