We don’t recommend that you keep up with your competition. We’d like to see you get ahead! Take a look at these three 2020 website trends and make sure that your business website is already in line with these recommendations.
Getting your website aligned with ADA guidelines, incorporating a user-friendly design will have your website in good shape and naturally lead to an overall brand refresh. Don’t worry if you can’t tick these boxes immediately – you can make practical changes fast to improve your website.
Here are three 2020 website trends to help you focus your efforts on making your website accessible, functional, and a great communicator of your brand messages. Get started now to make sure that your website is up to scratch.
ADA refers to the Americans with Disabilities Act. Getting your website compliant with ADA is a great place to start improving your website. It’s all about making your site as accessible and functional as possible. Any website elements that get in the way of functionality also get in the way of visitors and business goals.
Getting on board with ADA means following the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. These guidelines protect people with impairments or disabilities from discrimination. Failure to follow the guidelines can result in a fine or a lawsuit.
Meeting these standards is achievable for most businesses without overhauling an entire website. When analyzing ADA compliance, it helps to have a checklist of ADA points to achieve. In short, your website must be perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. When you look at it like that, why would any business not want to comply with ADA guidelines? Meeting the guidelines with ADA web development doesn’t necessarily require redesigning your site completely, but it can and should inform your web design changes.
Another excellent way to focus on making your site user-friendly is to optimize it for mobile devices. If your site performs well on a mobile device, it should perform well for every user.
Most searches now take place via mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets. If your site is not accessible or navigable on a mobile device, you can almost guarantee that you are losing business.
Because of the popularity of mobile search, Google indexes mobile versions of sites before desktop sites. How your website performs on a mobile device was once an afterthought for many businesses. By 2020, your mobile considerations should be front and center.
Optimizing your site for mobile devices doesn’t mean offering a truncated website for mobile users. Your site should offer viewers using mobile devices the same functionality and content as someone looking at your site on a desktop computer. Responsive web design handles the problem of visitors viewing your site on different sized screens, rearranging and resizing elements according to the viewer’s device.
Creating a site that works well on mobile devices means enhancing its operating speed, not least of all by boosting image-loading times with thoughtful use of optimized images. It also makes sense to optimize for local SEO, since vast numbers of local searches take place on mobile devices.
The third of our 2020 website trends that you need to know is performing a brand refresh. A brand refresh is like a makeover for your business. It’s about making positive changes to your brand’s tone, look, and style. Fast and affordable, it’s about making the most of the best of your existing brand. It can help you reconnect with lost customers, attract new business, and solidify existing relationships.
A brand refresh is not as dramatic as a rebrand. A rebrand is more of an overhaul of your overall image and philosophy. A refresh, however, intends to demonstrate that your brand is still modern. This is why it’s one of our top 2020 website trends, and you should get on board now. It demonstrates to your customers or clients that you are connected to your industry, you change with the times, and that they will be in good hands.
If you are already working on your site to ensure ADA compliance and you are optimizing your site for mobile and mobile-first indexing, this is a great time to incorporate a brand refresh. Why? When spring cleaning, you don’t pull out appliances, clean behind them, and then shove the dirty appliances back into place. Since you’re making an effort, you may as well do it properly. A brand refresh is a great opportunity to make positive changes.
Don’t wait until the new year to make changes. Don’t follow the competition. Get ahead by getting involved with 2020 website trends now. Our professional, expert designers can help bring your website up to speed so that you’re ready for anything the business world throws at you, including more visitors and more opportunities!
Get ready for tomorrow today. Contact David Taylor Digital now for an obligation-free estimate, excellent web design and development, and, of course, our friendly but expert advice.