Friday, November 23, 2012

Leads and your Harlingen Web Design

By Kris T. Lownuts


If you are upgrading your website or starting out and creating a new site, be sure that the overall plan of your site is based on the best marketing and conversion strategies available today. The data and hard numbers are there for everyone to see and there is really no excuse for not at least understanding the basics based on the research out there. Conversion marketing is a fast moving field supported by science. In other words, hard data backs up theory. Make sure the agency you are working with gives conversion marketing its due when planning your site.

Some people get hung up on the appearance of a site to the point where beauty becomes an end in itself. One should be slightly reluctant to work with a designer who has no business experience other than their own. Without an understanding of conversion marketing, there is the potential for a site that misses the mark. Your business website can look beautiful. Just make sure your design is not an artistic expression with no alignment to your business goals. Do your best to focus on the user experience and the business impact of your website.

Your site has to sell twenty four hours a day, seven days a week... in the form of sales, leads, or sign ups. Remember, your website may be viewed by millions of people every month, all of whom will make judgments about your company based on their experience with the site. It can be a scary thought, but an empowering one too. The decision to purchase your product or service, is strongly influenced by their experience with your company's website.

Web Design Shorthand

Think about color contrast when you are contemplating your site. And don't forget to consider how those colors will look across different devices. While some designers love dark backgrounds, they can present some real challenges for the user. Dark backgrounds don't show well on certain devices, especially on smartphones. There are some excellent sites that allow you to test your website in different browsers, different computer screen resolutions, on a variety of tablets and smartphones.

Overcrowding is a fatal flaw. People do tend to go overboard and try to put everything relevant to their business on their website. People don't surf the web this way. They scan. And they have very short attention spans. One needs to simplify. If at all possible, aim for one clear goal for every page. And don't just focus on your homepage. Every page needs a purpose and every page needs a call to action.

Page speed is vital. Three seconds is really the critical threshold. If you're any longer, people will leave your site. There are a number of free online locations where you can test your site speed to ensure that you are not overloading your page.

The power and influence of video is undeniable. You need it. It's not a nice add on or a luxury anymore. People expect you to have video. Viewers are more engaged with video. They stay longer at your site. And they buy more from you when you have video. And online video is not cost prohibitive. The quality of everyday video equipment is sufficient for most online video. Just make sure that basic quality guidelines are met. Don't have a camera with shaky movement and or poor sound quality.

Social proof, like testimonials, are vital. Especially if you are not a well recognized brand. Again, if you can get video testimonials, your conversions will go through the roof. And don't just be self promoting when getting testimonials. Keeping it natural and in the words of your clients will lend itself to a more genuine and valuable testimonial.




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