What Makes a Functional Website?

You should see your website as a digital concept store for your company. It should act as a store and office space all in one, where clients and customers can come, get to know your company, peruse your stock, and even buy or contact you as they please.

The amount of effort you put into your SEO and digital marketing will then determine how great your online website’s digital real estate is, but they cannot help you if your website itself is anything less than perfect.

Great Aesthetic Design

Web designs follow trends just like every other aesthetic out there. That is why you will see websites with the same theme pop up again and again, because that is what customers are looking for and like at the moment. The problem, however, is that they end up looking all the same. You need to find a way to stay trendy but remain unique enough that when users visit your site, they don’t mistake you for someone else. A custom built site will provide this, as well as allow you to provide a unique and custom experience that will help solidify your brand’s identity.

Easy to Use Interface on Desktop and Mobile

When designing your website user experience must be your priority. It needs to be seamless and easy to use whether your customer is visiting your site on their smartphone or desktop. In fact, mobile usage is so prominent that Google now considers your site’s mobile friendliness when ranking your website.

A Great Store

Your store is just as important as your home page, and in some cases, its user-friendliness and capabilities will be even more critical to your success. Your store needs to be able to keep up with stock numbers, be easy to use, beautiful, and above all able to expand as you need it. Using the right e-commerce platform will help you do this, and choosing the best in the business from the start will help your company grow. Use Blackbelt Commerce services to set up your e-commerce platform the way you want and need. There is no substitute for a well-designed store, and if you don’t have the experience, it is always better to outsource your design efforts.

Useful and Interesting Content

 

A blog, newsletter, and other content updates are so important for your business. Why? Because it encourages users to return to your website again and again. When they often return, they will become familiar with your brand, and turn to you whenever they need products or services in your niche.

Features of good content include:

• An attention-grabbing headline without delving into click-bait territory
• Well-written content
• A unique and interesting angle
• The use of images and infographics
• Newsworthy subjects – outside and inside your industry of work

Security and Privacy

Security and privacy is important to SEO, and now it is important for the government. In fact, you now need to legally adhere to the Data Protection Act 2018 if you operate and can have your website accessed in Europe. It is just one small step to better protect users from the increasingly sophisticated attacks from hackers attempting to gain access to personal information online. Adhere to this and do all you can to keep your company secure, so that you don’t have to deal with a scandal.

A Focus on SEO

Finally, you will always want to focus on SEO. From how the website functions, to how it is formatted, focusing on SEO and optimizing your on-site and off-site presence for Google’s search engines will help improve user experience overall. As a bonus, you will likely boost your search ranking, so it’s a win-win situation.