Are you wondering what makes a good website design? Do you remember how successful websites looked a few years ago? A big difference with what a website looks like today, or not? Websites are now much more streamlined and easy to use.
During the last 15 years, websites have become more than just a digital business card; the possibilities your website now has to increase your sales are simply fantastic. I imagine that sometimes you can no longer see the forest through the trees. That is why I would like to discuss what makes a good website design in this article!
94% of the negative feedback on your website is related to design.
In this article, I give you 20 tips for a successful website. It may be too much to include all these tips in your (new) website at once. You may also find some tips not interesting or not suitable for you and your product or service. Which can! Take a few minutes to just read it and get inspiration for your website.
What makes a good website design
1. Minimalist design
Minimalist web design sounds very simple but is the most difficult to achieve. It is a simple layout but without all the frills. The idea behind minimalism is to let your visitor focus on what you want them to remember after they leave your website. Make that the eye-catcher of your landing page.
Most website Visitors don’t like to read a lot. Nowadays we are more visually oriented. We also remember less of what we read online for the simple reason that we have to do and remember so much already.
Advantages of minimalist web design
When your design is all about informative images and videos, simple typography, and excellent use of white space, you will ultimately retain the visitor’s attention for longer. Visitors will also remember your website better.
Minimalism moves the emphasis to a visual illustration of the web design service and/or product offering.
2. Unique and large font
How do you handle fonts on your website? A specific font can make you unique and makes people remember you and your brand. Take the Coco-Cola font, for example; you recognize these immediately. Font plays a major role on your website.
To allow visitors to recognize the font of your brand, make it immediately visible on your homepage and landing page.
Advantages of a unique font on your website
If you use a large and unique font on your website, this will improve the dynamics of your website. Research has shown that 38% of your visitors do not return if the layout is not attractive. Therefore, make sure that the font you use on your website matches well with the rest of the design of your website.
3. Storytelling – Character Design
Custom graphics are a new trend. If you choose such graphic elements for your website, make them truly unique and personal.
Advantages of storytelling through graphic design
Studies have shown that 75% of consumers rate a company’s credibility on the website’s design. Do you remember the 90’s when 7Up had a curly hair mascot? Fido Dido was his name. With the introduction of this male, the marketing of the brand went through the ceiling. This is exactly the power of good graphics and creating a character.
4. Mobile-Friendly Design
It should come as no surprise to you that your website should look good on smartphones and other devices. Your website must be responsive. The number of visitors to your website via a smartphone is many times higher than any other device. This means that engagement is also a lot higher.
It is crucial to make your website responsive to different devices. The hamburger menu is a good example of this; this menu makes navigation on a smartphone much easier.
Advantages of a (mobile) responsive website
If your website loads quickly on mobile devices, you will notice that visitors spend more time on your website. This logically leads to higher conversion. Therefore, ensure that your visitor stays on your website for as long as possible.
5. Large and Responsive Hero images
Hero images are the large banners that you usually see on the homepage directly under the menu bar. They are meant to get your attention. Hero images are intended to be eye-catching and present. Although they are used on many websites and are often recommended to bring your product or service directly to the attention, you should still be careful that you use the hero image properly. For example, don’t hide it under large menu buttons. As a result, the hero image loses its charm.
Benefits of hero images on websites
Large images meet the expectations of your customers. They expect you to promote your product or service. With creative images, you trigger your visitors and turn them into repeat visitors.
6. Composition / Rule of Thirds
The composition is very important in web design. It helps you structure your website. Even the most beautiful fonts, hero images, and the best UX design are undone if your composition is a mess.
The basic rule of the Rule of Thirds is that you divide a photo or image into nine equal planes with two horizontal and two vertical lines. The four intersections that you create through the lines are the most interesting positions in a photo. These points are also called a ‘strong place’ and make a photo stronger and more dynamic.
Benefit from the Rule of Thirds on websites
When you apply this rule to your web pages, your web pages will look more organized and attractive. Your font and your photos and images, therefore, look much more harmonious.
7. White space
If you don’t know what white space means; this is the space in any composition. In this case, therefore, the space on your website. It is an unmarked space between two objects, such as photos and texts, that stops at a visual break. Because there is little distraction, it makes it easier for the visitor to focus on what you want.
Benefits of white space on your website
If you look at the website, you will notice that they use a lot of white space. As a result, the products attract the attention of the visitor.
The call-to-action is right down the tab. The quiet background image also has a shadow filter which makes the call-to-action all the more striking.
White space promotes user experience. Research has shown that this is most appreciated by visitors after the characteristics of the website itself. So don’t be afraid of empty spaces on your website, but give them the right touch.
8. Short videos
A short video of your product or service offering brings your page to life. Take a look at the website of Watson Design Group. This party combines all the above elements in a fantastic way. They use white space, short videos, hero images, and beautiful contrasting colors in such a thoughtful way that you simply keep looking at the website because you are curious about the rest of the design.
Advantages of video on websites
Video increases the user experience on your website. We now know that video content is one of the most sought-after content forms. Responding to this is a very good idea.
Video attracts a lot of attention and since your visitor assesses your website in just 2 seconds, the video makes a good first impression.
9. Background videos
Background videos are an alternative to hero images or banners. If your company and brand do a lot with video, this is the best way to approach your website visitors. A background video is a video stream that plays in the background of your website header and brings your page to life.
Techyscouts.com is a good example where background video is constantly moving. This breaks a static web page and makes your visitors remember your website.
Benefits of background videos on websites
A background video makes your website more attractive compared to a website on which nothing moves. Visitors sometimes form an opinion about a website in a fifth of a second. To steer this super-fast mind in the right direction, a background video is worth considering.
10. Great product photos
Being very clear about your product or service offer is key for an effective website. Skullcandy.com understands exactly how this works. Their landing page consists entirely of large product photos. They also make good use of the Rule of Thirds.
Advantages of large product photos on websites
When a product is displayed with a large photo, the product is highlighted very well. This increases the importance or benefit that the product gives the visitor. The potential customer understands exactly what is being offered to him. The product also receives the undivided attention of the visitor, which is also the ultimate goal of good web design.
11. Clear call-to-action
The call-to-action is crucial to increase your engagement. To get the maximum interaction with your visitor, you need to focus on the button. Therefore try not to bombard the button with too much design. The whole reason behind minimalism and adequate use of white space is to increase the visibility of the call-to-action button.
Your entire web design must work towards your call-to-action button. If the design of your website impresses your visitor enough, they will click on your button and go deeper into your site. This is your chance to generate leads, so make sure you make the most of it.
Advantages of a call-to-action on websites
A good example of a good call-to-action is that of Netflix. Everyone’s great fear is being stuck with something for a long time and having to pay for it. They are also afraid that canceling will cause a lot of misery. Netflix responds well to both fears with the ‘Join free for a month’ and ‘Cancel anytime’ call-to-action. Probably this reassurance alone has boosted their applications.
12. SEO optimization
All the time you put into your website only pays off if you can be found in search engines. If search engines can’t find your website, all your thoughtful design ideas are worth nothing. The bottom line is that you should already keep the SEO rules in mind when designing your website.
One of the most important rules of SEO is that the website must be a pleasant and good experience for the visitor. SEO is based on and revolves around user-friendliness. Other important aspects of effective SEO include adding meta tags, title tags, heading tags, etc.
Are you getting clammy hands just reading this? Then consider hiring someone for your SEO optimization. A good copywriter can take this work off your hands and although you will have to make a financial investment for it, it will certainly be worth it.
Advantages of SEO optimization
SEO makes your website visible to the general public. If you implement SEO down to the base of your website, you will see that when a user types in the keywords that you use, your website will appear in Google. And the higher your website appears in the search results, the better!
With a well-designed website where everything is in the right place, from the right fonts to attractive visualizations and on-point content, you can count on visitors coming back to your website.
13. Effective use of color
The use of color is extremely important for the design of your website. Correct use of color takes the overall visual impression of your website to a higher level.
You probably also know that certain colors can stimulate certain emotions and thoughts. Your favorite colors say a lot about you and your lifestyle. Think of the way you decorate your home, the clothes you wear, the car you drive, and even the food you are most attracted to.
Color can build or break a brand, add value, or ruin customer loyalty. It represents 90% of a customer’s opinion of a brand. And… all this within 90 seconds.
Advantages of effective use of color on websites
The use of color is invaluable in branding, marketing, and web design. It is so important that color is 85% of the reason to buy something from a company.
Many different colors can make your website cluttered and this deters visitors. The result; these visitors do not return. Use only a few well-thought-out colors to enhance the user experience and turn visitors into repeat visitors.
When you use different colors within the same color tone, your website will be subtle and pleasing to the eyes. I always advise customers to choose a maximum of 2 main colors and to combine these with basic colors, such as black, (dark) gray, and white.
As you can see, I also use two main colors on my website. Adobe has a handy tool where you can play with colors and see which colors match; the Adobe Colorwheel.
14. SVG animation
You probably already know JPG and PNG files, but SVG may be a new concept for you. SVG stands for ‘scalable vector graphics’. An SVG is an image or animation that you can adjust to any screen size without losing its graphic quality. Graphic designers make great use of SVGs and make them, for example, in Adobe Illustrator.
An SVG animation can give a website a real boost. These graphics bring a website to life.
Benefits of SVG animations on your website
SVG animations let your visitors stay on your website longer. This longer visitor time, provided there is enough stimulation, can lead to additional leads and sales. SVGs often also take up very little space, which prevents your website from running slow. They can also be modified with programming languages, such as JavaScript and CSS.
15. Easy website navigation
Simple navigation is a must for the not so technical visitors to your website. It may be hard to believe that this group of visitors still exists today, but it is. And when you design a website, you have to take this niche group into account. Besides, simplicity is often simply appreciated. Every visitor simply wants to find their way on a website quickly and easily. Is this not possible? Then you have lost this visitor. Simplicity is sometimes difficult to achieve, but the results of your website will be worth it.
Easy navigation will encourage your visitors to visit your website more often since they know where to go and don’t get lost in all kinds of menu items and buttons.
Benefits of a basic web navigation menu
Convenient navigation is one of the first impressions that your visitors will remember after they have visited your website. Do not underestimate the effect of your navigation menu on your visitor flow.
Nowadays many websites use the hamburger menu, especially on smartphones you come across this very often. This allows you to navigate quickly and easily through the website. Later in this article, I will go deeper into the hamburger menu.
On desktops, you often see that the menu bar remains visible after you scroll. It often narrows slightly. This allows you to see where you are on the website and you can also quickly navigate to other pages without having to scroll up again.
16. Use of organic forms
Imperfections in design nowadays give the design the status of art. We are slowly leaving the days of straightforward figures. Today imperfection is valued. This also applies to your website; imperfection and organic shapes and figures offer added value to your website. I do make the side note that this must of course fit within your branding. Nevertheless, this is worth considering.
Benefits of organic shapes on your website
Organic forms are peculiar, rare. The advantage of quirks is that they stand out. Something that stands out distinguishes you from your competition and makes people remember it. Your visitors will immediately remember every aspect of your website when they encounter bumps or imperfections.
17. Social media integration
Of course, Social Media Integration cannot be forgotten in this list. Social media integration is essential for your website. The way you do this depends of course on your brand and product or service. One branch is more suitable for visual social media, such as Instagram and Pinterest for the design or fashion branch. Other industries are better off on Facebook or Twitter. I always look for a good combination of social media and determine per channel what I place there. Sometimes the content overlaps, sometimes it doesn’t.
For inspiration, you can take a look at large multinationals, such as Nike, Dolce & Gabbana, Adidas, etc that deeply integrate social media into their website.
Advantages of social media integration on websites
A staggering number of people spend hours daily on their smartphones or tablet. To no one’s surprise, these people also surf en masse through social media. Several extensive studies also do not expect this behavior to stagnate; people will only be busier with their phones. Having said this … if your social media integration is on point, your website will be worth more when it comes to engagement. More engagement means a higher chance of sales, customers, and leads.
18. Burger menu
People who visit your website for information appreciate it if you let them find this information easily and easily. Information spread over your website is very annoying for the fast information collector. To accommodate your visitors, you can use the hamburger menu. This menu is usually seen as three stacked lines at the top of the left or right corner of the website.
Advantages of the hamburger menu on your website
The three lines together form the hamburger menu and take up little space. This leaves more space on your webpage for photos, images, and videos. This will benefit your overall design. Almost every well-known website uses a hamburger menu these days to make it easier for the user to navigate.
19. Custom digital illustrations
To explain this point well, I will immediately start with an example from Nike. Nike has done a great job when it comes to custom digital illustrations. They have created some special animations in which they remain true to their values and standards and the comfort that their products offer. The animations demonstrate total creative freedom.
Advantage of custom digital illustrations on your website
If you use custom illustrations correctly, there is a better chance that users can identify with what you are offering. An illustration can bring your brand and your values to life and help visitors remember your website better. Think about how long Nike’s illustrations will last you.
20. Speed optimization
Keep in mind that a visitor’s attention span is less than a few seconds. Several studies have shown it to be less than 50 milliseconds. So this is the time you have to impress your website visitor. This will not work if your website only needs this time to load. So try to ensure that your website is loaded in an instant.
An easy way to accomplish this is not to make images too heavy. This reduces the loading time and your website will load faster. A good web host is also important. Which host this is for you depends on personal preferences, such as your budget and the service you expect, but also how much web space you need.
Advantages of a fast website
Speed and its optimization have a major impact on your website design. Your design will only appeal to your visitors if it loads fast enough. If this is not the case, visitors will quickly leave your website. If visitors leave your website quickly, this leads to a higher bounce rate, which in turn leads to a lower SEO rating. As you will understand, this leads to a downward spiral of performance.
Conclusion: I hope you have liked the article what makes a good website design and understand what is really required to design a good website.If you think I missed some points,please do comment in the comment box and if you like it please give it a share.
Have you had any questions or need any help? Let’s go!
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