Internet users encounter a website's usability before they even have decided to use it and more so before they make up their minds on probable purchases. A fact is, the World Wide Web is the supreme setting for empowerment, where the one who is clicking the mouse controls everything.
Search engine marketing is important as generally visitors utilize search engines in order to discover your website. However once they reach your site, they should be able to use your site with ease and understand its content.
Research shows that of 43 million internet websites, only 42 percent are found to be usable.
Evidently, a major measure of website success is its effectiveness in converting leads into buyers. However, recent studies show that 50 percent of website sales are wasted due to the fact that visitors can not locate the content that they need; this leads to reduced web productivity, increased visitor frustration, wasted visitor time as well as loss of visitor's repeat visits then loss of website money.
Studies done by usability experts estimates that by improving your visitors web encounter, it increases your buyers by about 40 percent and also increases overall amount of orders by 10 percent.
A fact is, internet users do not like to wait, more so learning how to go about using a hard to navigate home page. Individuals need to easily understand how a certain website functions immediately after they have scanned the page.
Here are guidelines to improve your website's usability:
Simple and clear web navigation design
- It must be situated in the exact same location on each page and in exact same format, so that your visitors will not get frustrated and confused if links disappear and appear unpredictably.
- Use suitable text in your links. Your visitors must know where links will take them, through reading the text provided in your link.
- Employ the use of CSS to give emphasis on text links.
- Include always text links. Keep in mind that each page must have "text links" which links to all important parts of the website.
- Include a "site logo" linking to your home page. Generally site logos are located at the topmost "left-hand" corner of the page, where most visitors have the tendency to go even before searching for the homepage link which usually is located in your navigation system.
- Place a website search box to help your visitors locate quickly the information that they need.
Have a simple, authentic and clear content.
An attractive web design no doubt attracts visitors yet good content is what keeps your visitors on your site and inspires them to visit again.
- When you write your content, while it is important to think of search engines and keywords, also think of your visitors and present the content in a manner that is easily understandable and to solve their problems.
- Create an attractive heading and each paragraph should offer appealing statements all the time.
- Create a page content that is easy to scan and emphasize your most important points with colors, bold letters or header tags.
Support your brand
A great brand strengthens your visitors impression or idea of your website. A site that is branded strongly imprints in your visitors mind your products each time they go "shopping".
- Keep typefaces and colors consistent. Pick fonts and colors carefully and consistently use them throughout the website.
- Keep your page layout constant. Employ the use of a "website template" in order to carry out a consistent page structure.
- Make a helpful custom page error that can help visitors should they click on "a broken link" or enter an incorrect URL.
Provide visitor feedback
Forms are essential to your ecommerce site's success, as without it, you can not have your shopping cart. And any site generally needs a form for visitor feedback.
- Keep them short and easily accessible, clearly noting what is required in order to submit it successfully.
- Supply your complete contact details including your fax number, business telephone number, postal address and your email address.
Test your website prior to launching
- Test to determine if your website loads successfully in all "browsers".
- Test all your links and be sure that they are working properly.
- Look for and be sure that your website is free from errors.
- Search for grammatical errors and misspelled words and correct them if any.
- Test your website load times.
Web usability puts designing and planning primarily for your website visitors your top priority. Website that measure up to the expectations of its visitors will have comfortable visitors that will visit your site again and again and recommend it to friends.
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