Most people assume that web design is all about making sites “look pretty,” and indeed, that is the basis of the job. True web development goes well beyond that though. It focuses on not only making a site visually appealing, but also making it function well and enhance the overall visibility of a company. It’s easy to put pretty pictures on a webpage. It’s not easy to balance the form and function of a website to entice customers to take action. That’s where working with a good SEO company comes into play.
To ensure you get the best possible service from your web designers, let’s explore some unexpectedly important features of web design.
Search Engine Optimization
Search engine optimization (SEO) is the art of implementing keywords on a page so that the page shows up in Google, Bing, Yahoo, and other search engines. For instance, if you looked up “Detroit website design” on Google, you may come across this post because we incorporated the keyword into our writing. There is much more involved with SEO than keyword selection and placement, but that is the premise of the activity. If your web designer does not offer SEO services, you seriously need to look for someone else.
User Friendly Navigation
A good looking site mean nothing if users cannot navigate through it easily. Some web designers make nothing but big, complicated flash sites that seem amazing on the surface by are impossible to use. Most of these sites take forever to load, if they load at all. It is better to have a basic site that functions well than a complex site that no one can work with. If you need an example of that, think about Craigslist. This online classifieds platform is far from the best looking site online, but it works. That’s why 50 million Americans use it every year.
Internal Linking
Your internal links will play a big role in how users interact with your website. By linking supporting webpages to blog posts and other webpages on your website, you will encourage your users to travel from page to page, exploring the different information you have to offer. This is particularly important on service and product pages where users would logically be looking to learn more about specific information. Incorporate strategic inter-linking within your web design to maximize your user engagement.
