How to focus on user experience with your website design

Creating a positive experience for anyone using your website can be incredibly powerful. Not only is this the fast track to increasing conversion but it also allows the user to fully digest the content that you’ve invested time and resources in creating. So, where do you start when it comes to user experience in website design?

Focusing on accessibility

The most basic component of user experience is ensuring that as many users as possible have access to your website. There are a number of different ways that people can access your content and interact with the design of the site, primarily via mobile or desktop. Ensuring that the website has been designed so that all users can interact with it in a satisfying way, no matter how they are accessing the site, is an important first step.

Ensuring usability

Usability is a basic principle in designing a satisfying experience for visitors to your website. This has a number of key components, such as prioritising efficiency so that users can quickly navigate to what they need. Site design should be memorable so that if users return they are familiar with how to navigate around it and there should be options in place to help minimise user error.

User focused design

Putting the user at the heart of the design process will create a more positive experience for visitors to your site. This requires addressing all components in the design of the website and analysing how a user will interact with each one. Purposeful design will be crucial here – ensuring that every design decision you make has a specific purpose.

From the moment a user lands on the first page of your website, purposeful design best practice says that design and intentional storytelling elements should be in place to attract attention and encourage users to go on to explore more about the brand and its products. Purposeful design uses engagement to motivate a user to take action, integrating strategic calls to action and valuable keywords throughout the website.

Designing specific interactions

Implementing purpose-built interactions will provide opportunities to keep users engaged with your website and also to ensure that they are focused on the task that you want them to complete. This can be achieved using keywords and visual tools to represent information, such as video or animation.

The use of colour provides another opportunity to help influence the experience a user has on your website, whether that is in terms of driving them towards choosing particular products or affecting mood. Some colours are renowned for creating certain reactions in consumers (e.g. blue can establish trust) while others are influential because they have trended with certain generations, such as Millennial Pink or Gen Z Yellow.

Effective website design providing a positive user experience can make a difference to everything, from sales and revenue to brand recognition and identity. It’s a process worth exploring for any brand looking to improve engagement and outcomes online.

Get in touch with our website design team to review your website or discuss what you’re looking for as a complete redesign.