Can Your Design Actually Prevent You Making Sales?

We are all used to hearing that the correct web design is going to really make or break your website and that is something that cannot be disputed. However, right now we are going to look at another point that should be taken into consideration, can your design actually prevent you from making sales?

This in itself is an interesting question as it is a point that is often overlooked and that in itself is wrong. To be fair, we are talking more about modern designs rather than things that were the norm a number of years ago and it is all linked to the ever increasing number of tools that are available to the average designer.

Perhaps the main issue is that design can, at times, get in the way of functionality and that is where the problem can develop. It is all fair and well having a nice looking website, but if people are unable to get to where they want to go, or do what they want to do, then is there any point to it in all honesty?

There is also this constant belief that you must have a website that is ‘cool’ and this is one thing that can often get in the way of producing a website that is actually capable of converting and leading to sales. Now, is that not a bit crazy for the focus to be on having something that looks nice rather than having something that actually makes you money?

So the question now is, what designs actually cause an issue?

Too Much Animation.

Using animation on a website is something that has become more popular, but our advice is certainly that less is more. The problem with animation is that it can slow down a page and also act as a distraction. You want people to be able to browse without having them sitting there wondering what is going to happen next and that is a major issue with using animation. We are not saying to avoid it completely, but just think carefully about what it actually does add to your website.

Trying To Be Too Clean.

Another issue is when the designer is trying to be too clean with the website. Now, the last thing that we want is to have a website that is all over the place and messy, but the problem with trying to be too clean is that it can often lead to things being hidden such as the navigation. People really do not mind seeing a menu bar on a website. In actual fact, it is expected to be there so hiding it away just to make something look more minimalist should not be high on your list of priorities.

Having No Actual Call To Action.

One part of the design that can often be missing, and this is the crazy part, is that there is no actual call to action on the website. This really is just madness because you want to have something up there that will tell people that they need to take some kind of action whether it be to contact you, make an appointment online, or to complete that sale. If this is missing, then your website becomes just an information portal and that is one major reason why it will not then convert.

Having A Website That Loads Too Slowly.

The final point we are going to make is that if your website loads too slowly, then you have a major problem. It has been shown that a one second delay in your website loading can result in a drop in conversions of 7%. The difficulty here is that you never know which browser or device the person is going to be using and you also have no idea how powerful their computer is. What this means is that you could be making life so much harder for yourself by trying to be too clever with your site making it very heavy and slow to load. Just look at it this way, if it is slow to load, then people will simply click off and go elsewhere and you then have absolutely no chance of converting them.

Basically, what we are saying is that there are several important factors that must be taken into account when you are designing a website and do not allow yourself to be drawn into some kind of competition where your visitors are always going to be the losers. Do yourself a favor and spend some time studying what others are doing and model yourself on their website as there is a fine line between being too boring and too over the top.

Finally, do not be afraid to voice your disapproval of something that your web designer has come up with as it is better doing that than being left with a website that you hate. Remember, if you hate it, then there is a good chance that your visitors will as well and that alone will have a major impact on your conversion rates.