Quality Web Design – When Is It Time For A Change?

Creating a quality website design for your business may sound like a time-consuming and stressful project. Whether you’re starting from scratch with a new business or product, or “simply” refreshing your existing site, there are so many different details to consider. From web-design tools to SEO-marketing considerations, web design can seem intimidating to both novices and experts alike. And choosing the best design for your company may seem impossible. But with the expertise of a professional website-development firm, your project will be completed efficiently and professionally.

How long will it take to build out my company’s website design?

One of the first things to consider is the timeframe you’re working with. Your website designer will provide a timeline at the start of your project, but several areas may cause that timeline to either shorten or extend. While it’s impossible to estimate how long it will take since every company is different with varying design complexities, here are some points to keep in mind in order to make your website-design process as effective as possible:

Communication

Communication is crucial to building a strong quality web design. If your expectations are not made perfectly clear at the start of the project to your website designer, this could lead to misunderstandings or errors later on down the line. If you need some help centering your thoughts, some web design podcasts might be worth checking out. These problems may even force the designer to start over from scratch, so it’s imperative that you clearly articulate the purpose and goals of your website from the start. While it is the designer’s job to understand the needs of their clients prior to starting the project, oftentimes a client’s fear of asking too many questions or not explicitly stating their needs could lead to a misunderstanding of what the final product will entail. It is important to not shy away from questions or comments at the start of the project in order to ensure timely delivery.

Information gathering

It’s also important to understand the heavy work that goes into launching a professional website design from scratch. Hiring a web-development firm means bringing in people who may not be familiar with your business. In addition to “learning the ropes” of your industry, there will be an information-gathering phase to discuss your expectations as well as an educational piece if you are unfamiliar with web design for business. The web-development firm used should be knowledgeable enough to walk you through their timetable and what each step entails if need be.

Take the time to get it right

After the “meet and greet” takes place, the designer will then get to work on the design of your website. This will force the designer to ask him/herself several questions, including What is the purpose of the website? What are the benefits of the website? Should the website include a blog? How many pages should be included on the website? And many more. These, of course, should all be discussed with you as the business owner to ensure that your expectations are aligned with the final product. It is important to note that if extra time is needed to create a better quality web design, then it is always good to offer some flexibility. Your website is your customers’ first look at your company, which is why it’s vital to put your best foot forward. You want to market the best version of your company to potential customers. And sometimes perfection takes a little extra effort and time. 

Include SEO marketing

Another time-consuming aspect of quality website design is the final piece: search-engine optimization (SEO) marketing, which is the process of improving the visibility of your website through several tactics such as using high-performing keywords and creating a content marketing campaign. This crucial feature can make or break your website. It won’t matter how well your website runs or how beautiful it looks if it goes unnoticed due to poor SEO marketing.

It’s important that you be patient and let your team take the time to really set you up for success in the SEO area. This part of web design may be a hidden piece, but it’s once of the most crucial when it comes to really letting your website design shine. You do want people to actually find your website, right?

How important is SEO when it comes to my website design?

SEO (search engine optimization) and quality web design go hand-in-hand nowadays and as a result, more professional web-design companies are finding better ways to make both a priority. While a company’s website really can be their bread and butter, without SEO experts there is no way to really draw a potential audience in to truly realize what their business can offer. In fact, CIO offers a list of just how SEO can boost marketing efforts for your website. Although in the past SEO was an afterthought, today’s web design tools offer ways to include SEO marketing during content development, web design, and even small things such as uploading an image.

For example, even during the creation of this article, specific keywords are used that are chosen due to their performance online and specifically placed within the article, any videos or images uploaded will have been selected carefully and according to relevance, and even the website itself is built to be navigated easily with a responsive design. Basically, without SEO a website is virtually pointless.

Given the role that SEO plays in website design, incorporating so many different factors isn’t always simple and requires a great deal of consideration. We have only touched on a few areas that Search Engine Optimization effects, but let’s take a closer look at just how crucial these areas are in terms of professional web design.

Content and keyword selection

• Posting original content is one of the first rules of effective SEO marketing. This being the case, the web designer involved with your project should have a firm understanding of your business in order to research and create a meaningful list of keywords to use when developing content.
• The keywords selected will be found according to their performance online and will have a high likelihood of being searched, which gives your website a better chance of being noticed.
• Link building, or linking to credible sources, is another great way to get your content noticed. Readers not only like to read original content, but they will know a professional when they see one. Linking to credible sources is a great way to demonstrate your knowledge in the area.
• The web designer associated with your project will also make avoiding unethical SEO practices, or blackhat SEO practices, a priority. These practices include social-networking spam, keyword stuffing, hidden text, and using unrelated keywords to draw attention. These practices are well-known through the professional web-design community and should be avoided at all costs.

Quality Web Design

We have all been there; remember a time when you have clicked on a website only to have it load slower than you can make a sandwich and is covered in ads that have almost nothing to do with what you are reading and more annoying than helpful. These websites are quickly closed and forgotten about, while their competitors attract the business. More often than not, the competitor’s page wins the business due to the ease of navigation, overall design, and even the colors selected. Web-design tools and guides are more prevalent today than they were 10 years ago, so finding a way to make your website more manageable by users is fast and simple with the right website designer.

Ranking

Although ranking involves quite a few things, including some that have already been mentioned such as keywords, it really is the most important piece in the web-design puzzle. In fact, all of the things mentioned here—content and keyword selection, link building, quality web design, and ease of use—are all factors in how your website will perform and thus, how it is ranked by the search engines. The more traffic that comes to your website, the higher you are ranked. The result? A higher number of customers and more visibility through search engines.

So, is SEO important?

In short, Search Engine Optimization is one of the most important areas of website design in this day and age. With so many professional web-design companies utilizing SEO tools to get ahead, it is difficult to ignore the power that SEO has on website performance. Although SEO certainly isn’t required in order for a website to function, one thing is for certain: ignoring this aspect of quality web design will have a deeply negative impact on your website’s performance and should be taken seriously.

While building your company’s website design may seem like a frustrating and grueling process, if done correctly, it will offer optimal results for you and your business that will be well worth the time and effort spent getting it right. Be patient and let your website design team take their time so they can develop a website that not only looks great, but is beneficial in helping your company grow. If you have any questions or would like to speak with one of our website designers, please don’t hesitate to reach out.