A well-designed website not only helps in attracting more customers but also builds credibility for your brand. However, engaging a small business web designer and creating an effective website can be challenging.

This article will guide you through some web design tips that can make your website more successful and generate new enquiries for your business.

1. Make Sure You Understand Your Target Audience

Understanding your audience is key when designing a small local business website because it ensures the site meets the specific needs and preferences of your potential customers.

Knowing your audience allows you to tailor the content, design, and functionality to what is most relevant and appealing to them. So, the first step in designing a successful website is understanding who your audience is and what they want.

Ask yourself – What are their needs, preferences, pain points and behaviours? Once you know this you can tailor your website’s design and content to meet these needs.

Here are a few examples of what we’re talking about:

1. If your target audience is older, consider using larger fonts and simple navigation. Whereas if your audience is younger, a more dynamic design with multimedia elements might be more appealing.

2. If your local business caters primarily to young families, the website might include bright colours, easy-to-read fonts, and information about family-friendly services or products.

3. If your audience consists of B2B sales or you get visits from professionals, opt for a sleek, minimalist design with a professional colour scheme. Include detailed service descriptions, client testimonials, and easy access to contact information or appointment scheduling.

4. If your audience loves outdoor activities, use nature-inspired colours and imagery. Highlight products or services related to outdoor adventures and include user-generated content like photos from customers enjoying the outdoors.

5. For a health-conscious audience, use calming colours and imagery that evokes wellness. Provide informative content about health and wellness, easy access to health-related products or services, and a blog with tips for maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

2. Keeping Design Simple and Professional

A simple design ensures that your website is easy to navigate, making it more user-friendly.

When visitors can find what they’re looking for without hassle, they’re more likely to engage with your business. This ease of use is especially important for local businesses, as potential customers often visit the site seeking specific information, like hours of operation, services, or contact details.

A cluttered website will be overwhelming and off-putting for your visitors so aim for a simple, clean, and professional look. This doesn’t mean your site should be boring. Use colour and images strategically to draw attention to key areas.

A professional design also helps to establish trust and credibility. A well-designed website reflects the quality and professionalism of your business. It shows that you value your online presence and are committed to providing a good experience for your customers.

Ensure your navigation is simple and intuitive. Reduce the number of main navigation items in your menus and use common UI/UX design patterns so users don’t get confused.

Remember, less is more in web design and a simple yet professional web design will enhance the user experience, build trust, and ensure accessibility across various devices – all of which are key to attracting website visitors and converting them into new enquiries.

3. Ensure Your Site Is Mobile Friendly

With a significant portion of web traffic coming from mobile devices, having a mobile-responsive website is no longer optional.

Responsive web design automatically adjusts the layout based on the screen size, providing a seamless experience for all users. This ensures that the website is easy to navigate and read on smartphones and tablets, providing a good user experience regardless of the device.

To ensure your web designer creates a responsive website, you should:

1. Check Their Portfolio: Look at their previous work to see if they have experience in creating responsive websites.
2. Communicate Clearly: Directly state that mobile responsiveness is a priority for your website.
3. Request a Responsive Design Mock-up: Before the final site is built, ask for a mock-up or prototype that demonstrates the responsive features.
4. Stay Involved: Review the website during development to ensure that the responsiveness meets your expectations.

By emphasizing the importance of mobile responsiveness from the start, you can work collaboratively with your web designer to create a website that effectively serves both mobile and desktop users.

4. Ensure Your Site Is Fast Loading

No one likes a slow website.

Website speed is critical for user experience and search engine optimization (SEO) because slow loading times can lead to dissatisfied users and high bounce rates.

Optimize your website’s speed by compressing images, using caching, and minimizing the use of heavy scripts and animations. Ensure that your web hosting service is reliable and capable of supporting your website’s speed requirements. Discuss this aspect with your website designer before the site is launched.

You can regularly test your website’s speed to ensure it meets current standards by using a tool like Google Pagespeed Insights, Pingdom Speed Test or GTmetrix.

The thing is, faster websites typically have better conversion rates. Whether your goal is enquiries, sign-ups, or downloads, users are more likely to complete these actions if your site loads quickly and functions in the way users expect.

5. Write Simple & Original Website Content

Content is king on the internet. Ensure your website has relevant, engaging, and high-quality content.

Simple content is easily understandable, making it accessible to a wider range of visitors. When information is clear and straightforward, users are more likely to stay on your site, absorb the information, and take the desired actions, such as booking a consultation or phoning you directly.

Original content sets your website apart from your competitors. It reflects your unique voice and perspective, helping to establish your brand identity.

Originality also plays a key role in search engine optimization (SEO). Search engines favour unique content, which can improve your site’s visibility and ranking, leading to more organic traffic.

You can do this by including a blog section where you can share insights, how-to guides, the latest news/trends and educational content related to your business and industry.

6. Make Sure You Have A Call-to-Action (CTA)

CTAs are crucial in guiding your visitors towards the actions you want them to take, like calling your local phone number, requesting an appointment or signing up for a newsletter.

Use clear and compelling CTAs on your website. Place them strategically on your website where they are most likely to catch the user’s attention.

For example, you need to ensure that you have a call-to-action button in the top right corner of your website in the header.

It’s imperative to direct your users on what action they need to take to do business with you. 99% of all users expect to find your primary CTA in the top right corner so make sure your website is doing this.

7. Implement Some Simple On-Page SEO Best Practices

Basic on-page SEO strategies are essential for making your website visible in search engines.

Search engines rank individual web pages, not entire websites. Make sure you create an individual page for each service you offer and also for each location you can service.

Once you’ve got all your pages created, you should focus on adding keyword-enhanced meta page titles, crafting compelling meta descriptions and ensuring that your H1 heading also contains the keywords you want the page to rank for in search engines.

When your site is live, you should also submit listings to free (and paid) online local directories with links back to your website. This is called building citations and it can help your business earn trust and credibility with search engines.

This can help improve your site’s visibility and ranking in the search engine results pages (SERPS) which will allow your ideal customers to find you when searching online.

8. Show Social Proof on your Site

Showing social proof on your website is a powerful way to build trust and credibility with visitors.

When potential customers see testimonials, reviews, case studies or endorsements from other users, it provides a sense of reassurance about the quality and reliability of your products or services. This kind of proof from real users can greatly influence decision-making, as people often rely on the experiences of others to guide their own choices.

Additionally, social proof can highlight the popularity and acceptance of your offerings. Seeing that others have had positive experiences creates a bandwagon effect, where new visitors are more inclined to join in and try your products or services. This can be particularly effective for new visitors who are unfamiliar with your brand.

Display these social proof elements in prominent positions on your website to quickly build trust and credibility with your visitors.

You can include a dedicated testimonials page or feature these on your homepage. It’s a straightforward approach to enhance your website’s appeal and encourage conversions.

9. Use Consistent Branding on your Website

Your website should accurately reflect your brand’s visual identity.

Use consistent branding elements like colours, logos, and tone of voice throughout your site. If your logo/brand designer provided you with a style guide, be sure to supply this to your web designer.

This consistency builds trust and professionalism, helps in building brand recognition and ensures a cohesive user experience.

When visitors see the same themes and styles across all your platforms and materials, they’re more likely to remember and recognize your brand elsewhere. This familiarity can lead to increased customer loyalty and a stronger connection with your audience.

Consistent branding on your business website helps establish a professional image, builds trust with your audience, and enhances brand recognition. It’s a straightforward yet effective way to make your business stand out and connect with your visitors.

10. Invest in Updates and Regular Maintenance

A website is not a one-time project. Regular updates and maintenance are essential to ensure your site remains secure, functional, and relevant.

Updated hosting environment, website and plugin software is essential for security. Updating your website regularly helps patch security vulnerabilities, protecting it from hacker attacks and malware. This is the most important aspect, as a secure website safeguards your data, your business reputation and your users’ trust.

Secondly, updates can significantly enhance the performance and user experience of your website. They often include optimizations that make your website faster and more efficient, leading to better engagement with your visitors. Plus, search engines favour regularly updated sites, potentially improving your SEO ranking.

Lastly, regular maintenance ensures your website doesn’t become obsolete as web technologies evolve so quickly. It’s more cost-effective in the long run, as it prevents the high costs associated with fixing a severely outdated, broken or compromised website.

Closing Thoughts

A well-designed website can be a powerful tool for small businesses.

By following these web design tips, you can create a website that not only looks great but also performs well, engages your audience, and supports your business goals.

Remember, your website is often the first impression potential customers have of your business, so make it count!