Whether it is a single landing page or a web page on your site, intentional design and content will keep your website visitor on the page longer and will improve the likelihood of them taking action. These five simple web page design tips will improve the user experience (UX) and, hopefully, your website conversion rates.
1. Optimize Space Above the Fold
This is an old newspaper term that refers to the content you see when you grab a newspaper, before you have to unfold it to see the rest of the page or open it to see other pages. This is where your web page visitors land.
It was important for newspapers, and it’s still important for websites. The Nielsen Norman Group found that web page visitors spend 57% of their time above the fold, so it’s crucial to engage the user there with compelling content and a call-to-action or visual cue for the next step on your site.
However, you should not crowd all of your information in this space. Which leads us to…
2. Keep It Clean and Simple
By now you should know your target audience, so tailor the experience to what they need to know now. Hubspot found that 3 out of 4 users most care about how easy it is to find what they are looking for – so don’t over-think or over-design it.
Use content size, position and color to subtly tell them how they should read your page. Use negative space around your focal point and pops of color to signal a call to action.
Keeping a the site design simple also means you…
3. Limit the Choices
Hick’s Law states that the more choices you have, the worse your chances of influencing a decision. Limit the choices your user makes to ONE call-to-action at a time.
Use your web page to tell a story that leads them through the information they need to know, then offer them a choice (or three options or variations of the choice). Use visual cues to point them in the right direction, like someone in a photo looking at the next option or arrows to the next step.
Speaking of images…
4. Avoid Stock Photos
This can be tough when you have a remote team in a pandemic. However, when possible, get high-quality photos of you, your team and your work to use on the web page.
The Nielsen Norman Group found that stock photos did more harm than good. People, product photos and visuals that give you more information attract the eye and create a positive experience. Eye-tracking software shows that users almost completely avoid stock images.
5. Make It Mobile-Friendly and Mobile-Responsive
Fifty-five percent of web traffic takes place on a mobile device according to Statista, which means your web page must look great on mobile. Your web team should design and code with this in mind, but if you are leading this web design project, be sure you use templates that are built to respond on mobile screens, preview pages on mobile and check your pages regularly.
Don’t have anyone to implement these web page design tips on your landing page or website? Read about our Services and learn how Digital Mark can make your next web page design a breeze.
