Here are some best practices to elevate your organization’s website design.
The success of your website hinges on more than just its appearance. User experience (UX) stands at the forefront, dictating how visitors interact with you online from the moment they arrive at your site to the actions they take. Your site should be as easy to use and understand as possible, making it that much more likely that your visitor will do business with you. At BryteBoost, we understand that a positive user experience is essential to achieving business objectives and fostering long-term customer relationships. Here are some actionable tips we implement into both the design and development stages to improve website usability, navigation, and accessibility to ensure visitors have a pleasant and effective interaction with your site:
Simplify Navigation
Streamline the navigation menu to make it intuitive and easy to navigate. Organize content logically and use clear labels to help users find what they’re looking for quickly. For websites with extensive content, we recommend utilizing a dropdown or popout menu – a fully expanded overview of all subpages – to provide a comprehensive outline of available options.
Prioritize Mobile Responsiveness
80% of searches are now performed on phones or pads, making a mobile-friendly site version a necessity. This means taking a responsive design approach so that websites adapt seamlessly to various screen sizes and resolutions. We test each website across different devices and browsers to confirm consistent performance and user experience.
Optimize Page Load Speed
Website speed is crucial for retaining visitors and improving search engine rankings. Focus on minimizing file sizes, leveraging browser caching, and optimizing images to reduce load times. We implement technologies that improve load speeds, especially when large numbers of images or video are on a site. We can also recommend hosting companies that are geared toward loading speed, while maintaining stability.
Enhance Readability
Pay attention to elements such as typography, font sizes, and color contrasts during the design phase to improve readability. Provide alternate text for images and use descriptive language for buttons and links. Referring to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and remaining conscientious of this standard helps to make web content more accessible to people with disabilities. Don’t feel obligated to read all of the technical stuff—we understand that for many people, that would make their eyes glaze over. That’s why we’re happy to do it for you.
Clear and Simple Doesn’t Mean Boring
While it is essential to make navigating your site clear, that doesn’t mean it has to look bland. Clear and simple can and should appear elegant and pleasing. A site should adhere to and enhance your organization’s corporate appearance standards (logo, colors, style of photography or illustration, etc.).
Simplify Forms and Calls to Action
- Keep in mind the design of forms and buttons in order to minimize frustration and improve conversion rates. When multiple fields of information need to be collected, consider breaking down the form into a couple of smaller, more manageable steps. Clearly indicate required fields and provide real-time feedback to users to reduce errors.
- Make calls to action (CTAs) prominent, compelling, and easy to click. A CTA suggests to the viewer that they do something—“Contact Us,” “Call Today,” etc. A CTA should appear on the website’s homepage and at least one on each of the subpages to encourage users to remain on the site, continue exploring, and ultimately initiate a conversation with your company.
Additional resources
- Nielsen Norman Group – UX Research and Insights
https://www.nngroup.com One of the most respected authorities on user experience design, offering research-backed articles on usability, accessibility, and human-computer interaction.
- Google PageSpeed Insights
https://pagespeed.web.dev Google’s official tool for analyzing website speed and performance, with actionable suggestions that impact SEO and user engagement.
- WebAIM – Web Accessibility in Mind
https://webaim.org An essential resource for understanding and implementing accessibility standards (including WCAG) to make your website usable for all audiences.
- StatCounter – Global Stats on Web and Mobile Traffic
https://gs.statcounter.com Provides up-to-date data on device usage, browser share, and platform trends to guide decisions around mobile optimization and cross-platform compatibility.