The question that I most frequently hear from people is "How can I attract thousands of visitors to my site each month?" Well, driving high traffic to your site is important, but what's even more important, is designing a website that makes them stay.
After all, what's the use of spending all your time and money on creating a unique product that many people want, building a 100-page site, winning top rankings on search engines, and spending $5,000 in advertising if visitors don't stay once they arrive?
In this article, you're going to learn 5 important website design tips to make your site more attractive. So not only your website will attract many visitors, but it will also motivate them to stay for a while, which is your only chance to let them know about your offers and turn them into newsletter subscribers or even paying customers.
#1. Your Site Should Be Fast Loading
One of the biggest problems you see on the Internet is that some websites are slow loading. There are many sites out there that take more than 20 seconds to load -- a lifetime on the Internet. People just don't have time and patience to wait that long.
The best way to make your site fast-loading is to use more text and fewer graphic. Wild graphics and animations are "traffic killers" so don't use them unless you really need to. If it takes more than 10 seconds for your web pages to load, chances are you're losing as much as half of your site's traffic!
Don't assume all visitors have fast connections. Many people still use slow connections like 36.6 kbps or 28.8 kbps, so design your website the way everyone can view it quickly -- not just the few who have high-speed connections.
To make sure your website loads fast, view your site with slow connections. If it doesn't load in 10 seconds, reduce the number and the size of graphics. WebGraphics Optimizer is a great software that helps you reduce graphic size while the quality doesn't really change and it looks almost the same.
#2. Make Your Website Easy to Navigate
People should easily and quickly find what they're looking for. Don't make your visitors click on 10 links, scroll down each page, and click on the "back" button several times to finally find the page they're looking for.
Statistics show that we lose up to 50% of visitors each time we make them click on a link. That's why all the pages of your site shouldn't be more than five clicks away from your home page. Make your visitors enjoy surfing your site. It should be easy for them to find the information that they want.
Also remember not everyone enters your website from the home page, especially if they find your site through search engines. So make sure each page should have a title so they always know where they are at, and a link to the most important pages of your website (e.g. home page, order page, contact page and so on).
Another way to make your site easy-to-navigate is using clear link texts. Visitors must know where each link will take them at a glance. For example, if you want to create a link to your order page, "Sale" is not a good name because it's unclear and confusing. Use "Order" instead because it's common.
The key is making it easy for them to find what they want, so make your site easy to navigate.
#3. Use Suitable Colors
Your copy is the most important part of your website, so it's essential that you make it easy to read, and nothing is easier to read than black text on white background.
The easier it is to read your copy, the more effective it will be. If you use inappropriate colors that make your copy difficult to read, few people will bother reading it, and if no one reads your copy how are you going to make sales?
#4. Don't Overuse Pop-ups
What's a pop-up? It's a window -- usually a small window -- that is opened when you click on a link and open or close a window. Unfortunately many webmasters go overboard with pop-ups which only results in annoying visitors.
They think if a pop-up appears and asks to order each time a visitor closes a window, he's more likely to make a purchase... but they're completely wrong. Not only will they not make any sales, but they'll also lose a potential customer forever.
Don't get me wrong! Using pop-ups can be an effective way to get a higher response to your offer. What I'm saying is that you shouldn't overuse and abuse them. They're good marketing tools if you use them wisely.
Pop-ups are best used to offer something of high value to your site visitors... something that you know they're very interested in. Make an offer that they can't resist!
#5. Remember Your Purpose
Why are you creating your website? Do you want to sell your products and services? What do you expect from your site? Decide on your purpose before you start designing your site. This is extremely important.
Each part of your website should lead to your purpose. All the links, graphics, titles, and the colors you choose should lead to what you want from your site.
Sometimes people are so wrapped up in being a website owner that they forget their site is to sell. Instead of designing a sale-oriented website, all they're trying to do is designing a "thing of beauty". But there's a problem here: beauty won't sell.
It doesn't matter if your visitors are impressed by professional Flash animations and graphics on your site. You should ask yourself: Does your website sell or just impress people? Do people say,"Wow! How beautiful!" and then close the window and go to another site, whithout even noticing your salesletter at the bottom of the page?
Keep your purpose in mind all the time. If you expect your website to sell, then design it the way it makes visitors interested in your offer and motivates them to buy.
About The Author: Ladan Lashkari is a respected Internet marketing expert, and the owner of http://www.FreeNewsletterIdeas.com/ where you'll find free newsletter templates, creative newsletter ideas, honest reviews, and helpful resources to start your own highly profitable email marketing campaign.
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