5 UX factors for designing websites that get you customers

Identifying your target audience might seem obvious, but it’s important to spend some time on this and get it right the first time.

You should think about who is likely to access your site and why, making sure your website content clearly meets their needs.

Prioritise the more important users and goals, while considering funnels and how people move through your site to reach a decision.

Other users may be interested in your site too, such as investors, suppliers and contractors, so try to provide the right information for them as well.

Have you ever visited a website and found it hard to use or find the information that you wanted?

It’s a frustrating experience for the user, so it pays to think about how visitors move through your site.

Think about every reason a visitor would use your site, and then structure it so everything can be reached in a couple of clicks from the home page.

Make it easy to find top level ideas, but also include deeper levels of information for users who want it.

Remember that every page on your site is a potential landing page, so consider how users would move through your site and avoid any dead ends in your layout.

You don’t have to reinvent the wheel when it comes to designing your website navigation.

Use sensible navigation models that are intuitive and easy to use. If you’re unsure, try some user testing or heatmapping tools to see how users navigate through your site.

Try to keep your navigation as clear as possible and avoid things like “mystery-meat” navigation models that may be visually attractive but confusing for the user.

You can also test how easy it is for users to find what they are looking for through information architecture (IA) testing and tools such as Treejack.

Your design choices should flow consistently throughout your site, right down to the smallest detail.

For example, make sure your branding is clear and recognisable on your site.

The font choices and sizes should be legible in all sizes, whether it’s for desktop, mobile or other devices.

Try to incorporate animations, motion graphics and transitions into your website design to make it more engaging and interactive.

Also, consider your colour choices and how they contrast, bearing in mind accessibility issues for people who are visually impaired.

People are using their smart phones to go online more and more, but that doesn’t mean you should design your site just for mobile.

Instead, design your website to be responsive and reactive rather than setting up different mobile and desktop versions.

Check how your site works at any screen size with this responsive design tool and think about how information is presented ‘above the fold’ or the content that appears first when a user visits your site.