Web development: where to start
T
he website is now one of the main communication channels and therefore a fundamental tool in one's marketing strategy. Precisely for this reason, it should be designed with care, so as to create a portal that can properly promote the company, but above all involve the target audience. In order for a website to be considered truly effective, it is in fact necessary to start with the user, focusing on his or her needs, interests, but also on the main modes of interaction. Knowing your audience is therefore the first step in creating a truly effective portal.
Needs, interests and user experience
In the development phase, the information architecture must be taken into account by designing the menu and the classification of the various contents. Here, products, services and topics of interest to the user must be taken into account and organised in the best possible way. In this regard, an effective website is a portal that can make the use of all content simple and intuitive. In other words, a well-made portal allows one to find what one is looking for very easily and without too much effort. Secondly, another very important element must be taken into consideration: the user experience. This concept refers precisely to the browsing experience that every user faces when he or she lands on a portal.
Dal web design allo user experience design
The design of the site, as well as the web design, must therefore be oriented in such a way as to make this experience as pleasant as possible. In other words, the user must easily find what he is looking for (a few clicks to reach the desired page), must not encounter any disturbing elements (excessive presence of advertisements or widgets) and must be able to perform any action (such as requesting information or subscribing to the newsletter) quickly and easily. To create a truly effective website, it is therefore necessary to focus not only on the appearance of the portal, but also and above all on the navigation experience. Precisely for this reason, rather than user experience, we now speak of user experience design, a new branch in which the design of the site is developed in such a way as to improve and make the user's browsing experience more pleasant.
Increasing conversions with an effective website
On the other hand, such an approach also favours an increase in conversions. If the user can navigate easily, he or she will also have a greater interest in exploring the site and taking an action, such as ordering a product or requesting information. Otherwise, a very cluttered and unattractive site will soon be abandoned. Not only that, it is very likely that the user will never return to it. The design phase of a portal must therefore take two aspects into account: the visual aspect and the navigation aspect. It is therefore certainly very important to choose the right colour, to identify the most representative and appealing images and videos, but it is just as crucial to take care of the user experience design. This means:
- Improve the readability of the site by choosing attractive fonts and opting for short, concise texts;
- Velocizzare il caricamento delle pagine, così da evitare il più possibile l’abbandono della navigazione;
- Eliminate unnecessary elements and favour a minimal layout;
- Add eye-catching visual elements, i.e. images and videos that can tell the story of your products, services or company and capture the user's attention;
- Make the site accessible from all devices;
- Use effective call-to-actions so as to increase the number of conversions;
- Provide complete contact information.
Many users, in fact, often land on a company website simply to search for company contacts and it is therefore essential to indicate all possible channels of communication (telephone, chat, e-mail, etc.).
