The Importance of UX Design

When designing a website for your business, it can be tempting to build and develop it how you want it to look or how you want it to flow. The issue with this, and as many a web developer will tell you, is that – your website is not for you; it is for your users. User experience, or UX for short, is vital in website design and development for many reasons that we will dig into in this blog. 

What Is UX?

User experience in website design is used to create websites that provide meaningful and relevant experiences to users. It encompasses your entire website, from how it looks to how it is used and the end goals that you have in mind. 

Why Is UX So Important?

The end goal of any website is to help market your business. Be this attracting new a customer or selling goods and services online. The experience the user has will determine the outcome. There are no two ways about it; if they have a poor experience with your website – it reflects poorly on your business. 

As much as 70% of the decision to buy from your business is done before the customer makes contact – it is vital your website experience is a positive one. We all have busy lives, and we want everything to be simple, easy to use and quick. So with that in mind, the simpler you make it for the visitor to achieve their goal, the more leads you will generate from customers. 

UX also benefits marketing as more and more search engines such as Google are factoring in user experiences into their ranking factors. Google has made no secret of their updates over the last 5-6 years that have all been geared towards user experience and user intent – Core Web Vitals is a prime example. 

What Makes a Great User Experience?

One of the biggest hurdles for any website designer thinking of UX is that everyone is different, so their experiences of using your website will be different. There are, however, a few golden rules when it comes to good UX, such as:

• Ease of navigation
• Responsive design
• Ease of use of functions
• Clear purpose
• Defined and clear branding
• Accessibility

3 Simple To Implement Quick UX Wins

Fonts

Clear, easy to read fonts are one big win for website usability and experience. One of the quickest ways to ensure that a user clicks away from your website is to make it hard for them to read any of your content. Fancy swirly fonts may look the part, but are they easy to read on smaller mobile devices? Are they readable without having to zoom in? All these things need to be taken into consideration when choosing a font. 

Header Structure

Website owners and content writers like to think that users are reading all the content, but trust us, they are not! Most users will skim over a page, read the high-level headers, take in a few images and then decide if you offer what they require. Your headers are the gateway to capturing their attention. 

Navigation 

Where are the products? How do I get in touch with you? What services do you offer? If your website navigation is not straightforward, easy to find, and less than a few clicks away, your UX is poor, and your conversion rates suffer. Make it easy to get around your website and easy for people to find what they are looking for. 

Summary

Getting your UX right is more than just the three examples above. It goes to the fabric and design of your website’s back and front end, from contact forms to branding and beyond. It is also a process that never stops. As your website evolves and grows, you will need to be checking to ensure that there are no pinch points or issues causing users to navigate away from your site. 

Here at E2E, we use a nifty bit of software for our clients that allows us to see how users interact with your website, what pages they are visiting and how they use your menu, etc. It allows us to get great insights into your website and make amendments where they are needed. If you are interested in us working with you on your website’s UX and using the tool, get in touch today!

Here at E2E, we are experts in small businesses and how they operate and here to take the strain from your shoulders when it comes to getting an online presence that works for you. We are a team of dedicated small business specialists who know precisely what it takes and have the tools, the skills and the passion for helping your business succeed online.