The digital marketing landscape is more competitive than ever, and your business simply won’t be able to achieve superior marketing and lead generation results without an effective website. While you likely already understand the importance of a strong website as the hub of your digital marketing efforts, the reality is building this website is more complicated than you might think. Website design and development best practices have changed considerably over recent years as Google’s search algorithms continue to evolve, AI’s impact on marketing grows, and the techniques used by web designers and developers become more sophisticated.
When built according to modern web design and development best practices, your website has the potential to be a powerful marketing tool that conveys your brand messaging, establishes your business as a trusted source of information, increases your visibility among your target audience, delivers an exceptional user experience and drives quality leads that will potentially turn into lucrative, long-term customers. But when these best practices are ignored, you run the risk of creating a poorly performing website that doesn’t rank well in the search engines, drives people away from your website before they take the time to learn about your business, and fails to generate the leads your business needs.
Before your business engages in a time-consuming and costly website redesign this year, make sure you understand the latest best practices that should drive the process. The following overview will help you understand the important elements of the process that must be addressed.
Understanding the Symbiotic Relationship Between Website Design and Development
Before we jump into our discussion of best practices, it’s important to understand that an effective website involves two distinct, but related, processes – website design and website development. These two processes form a symbiotic relationship, and it’s critical that both are emphasized when you’re building your new website.
Website design focuses on the front-end aspects of your website which users will see and engage with. It involves the process of planning, creating and arranging these elements in a manner that enhances both the visual appeal and overall user experience of your website. Web design encompasses both the aesthetic aspects of your website that make it appealing, such as the visual layout and branding, and the technical elements that deliver a great user experience, such as responsiveness, usability and navigation architecture.
Website development focuses on the back-end aspects of your website which users will never actually see or interact with, but are critical to the site’s ability to function properly. It involves the process of building, creating and maintaining your website’s infrastructure. Web development consists of a variety of technical aspects of the process, including:
- Writing the code that makes the website function
- Managing the server, databases and application logic that power your website behind the scenes
- Providing a comprehensive interface that connects the front-end and back-end aspects of your website
- Implementing systems that allow you to organize and update your content in an efficient manner
It’s easy to get hyper focused on the visual elements associated with the web design as you move through the process. After all, these are the elements that you will see and interact with once the website is live. It’s understandable that you might assume your website will perform well as long as it “looks good.”
However, an appealing appearance is just one part of the process and focusing on the design elements to the point where you neglect web development best practices is a surefire way to end up with a website that underperforms. To achieve the marketing results your business needs to grow and thrive, your website must place equal emphasis on the design and development aspects of the process. This will ensure that the front-end layout appeals to your audience and provides a great user experience, while the back-end infrastructure possesses the functionality necessary for your website to perform at optimal levels.
One of the benefits of working with an experienced website design and development company is that they will help keep you focused on these dual aspects of the process. This will ensure your new website is built according to both web design and development best practices, and that it emphasizes both aspects of the process in a manner that achieves the symbiotic relationship necessary for superior marketing results.
9 Critical Best Practices to Incorporate with Your Upcoming Website Build
Due to the interrelated nature of website design and development, we’re going to discuss the latest best practices for both aspects of the process together. Modern website design and development relies on a mix of user-centric fundamentals, bold creativity and a strong focus on accessibility to achieve great results. In order for your new website to perform well and generate the marketing results your business needs, it’s critical that you address the following items when constructing your new website.
Create an Effective Visual Hierarchy and Layout
For your website to be effective, it must strategically coordinate all the design elements in a way that guides the attention of visitors to the most important parts of the page they’re viewing, such as your calls to action. When you’re strategic about your design elements and create a layout that guides the attention and actions of users, you’ll generate more conversions.
Creating an effective visual hierarchy and layout involves incorporating the following factors into your web design:
- Balance – Your website’s design should distribute the visual elements on the page in a balanced way that weights the importance of each element to create a layout that lets the user understand which items require their attention the most.
- Composition – Your web pages should be organized and composed in a way that creates a cohesive structure.
- Scale – You can use different sizes on a page to highlight the most important details and information. When leveraging scale in your web design, make sure to limit the variation to three font sizes per page to avoid creating distractions for the reader. You should also emphasize at most two key elements on a page to enlarge, otherwise your most important elements won’t stand out as effectively.
- White Space – White space refers to the empty spaces between the different elements on your page. It’s used to break up these elements and draw your attention to the items that are most important to achieving your marketing goals.
- Texture – Adding texture to your page background will provide a three-dimensional element that creates contrast in the overall design. This can help define your brand’s tone, make text-heavy pages easier to read and reinforce the website’s structure.
- Visuals – High-quality images and videos are essential and should be included on every page. They break up the text, make your website more visually appealing, and improve user engagement.
Use Typography that Improves Readability and Reinforces Your Brand
Your website’s typography refers to the various elements associated with the fonts used for the text on each page, including the font’s style, size and appearance. Choosing the proper typography for your website is critical for several reasons. It enhances your website’s visual appeal, helps provide a better user experience and optimizes your website’s accessibility (something that significantly impacts your search rankings). In addition, effective use of typography will improve the readability of your web pages and reinforce your company’s brand.
When considering the typography for your website, make sure to adhere to the following best practices:
- Don’t use more than two different font styles – Using too many font styles will make the text on the page harder to read, and it can potentially make your website look less professional. To maintain a cohesive feel that is easy to read and looks professional, stick to no more than two different font styles, and make sure they’re visually compatible with each other.
- Maintain proportional text sizes – The text sizes of your font should be proportional with each other. In other words, each increase in size should be of the same value. This makes it easy for readers to identify the hierarchy of importance of different headers on the page. In addition, choose a minimum font size of 12 pt. to improve readability.
- Use web-safe fonts – Web-safe fonts will appear as intended regardless of the browser or device your website is being viewed on. This will ensure your website maintains a cohesive look whenever it’s being viewed.
- Choose font styles that align with your branding – If you have a specific font used with your logo and other important branding materials, make sure any fonts you use for your website complement your branding fonts to maintain a cohesive brand experience.
Create a User-Friendly Navigation Architecture
Your website navigation architecture refers to the organizational method used to help visitors browse your website to find the information they need. A streamlined navigation structure that’s easy to follow will provide a good user experience and keep visitors on your website longer. If you have a convoluted navigation structure that makes it hard to find the information people are looking for, they will most likely leave to find a website that is easier to browse.
To ensure your navigation architecture enhances the user experience and improves the performance of your website, make sure to adhere to the following best practices:
- Create an intuitive menu – Your navigation menus should be intuitive and straightforward to ensure users can easily find the most important pages on your website. This holds for both the horizontal navigation at the top of your website which displays the top-level pages on the site as well as the vertical navigation featuring links to specific subpages that may be of interest.
- Include a footer menu – Your footer menu at the bottom of the page is an important element that helps users find information such as your company profile, contact information, social media links, and links to specific products or services. Don’t neglect this element of your website navigation architecture, as it allows you to include information typically not found in the vertical and horizontal menus.
Create Compelling CTA Buttons
Your CTA buttons play a critical role in driving conversions, such as when you ask users to schedule a consultation, request a demo or make a purchase. Your CTA buttons will only be effective if they’re placed in a highly visible location and make it easy for users to understand what the button is asking them to do. To achieve these goals:
- Make sure your CTA buttons contain a clear explanation of the action you want users to take
- Place them in a prominent location on the page so that they will be easy to find
- Use a contrasting color from the primary background color to ensure your CTA buttons are easily visible
- Make sure the buttons work easily when pressed (this is especially important on mobile devices)
Use Clean Code
The code used for your website plays a critical role in the way it functions. Websites built using clean code that reflects the most up-to-date coding conventions will load faster, function more effectively, provide a better user experience and rank better on search engines than websites using bloated, outdated code. One of the benefits of choosing custom web design over a templated website is that most website templates are built on bloated code that provides more of a one-size-fits-all approach to website development. Custom web design, on the other hand, uses clean code that is intended to achieve the specific functionality your website needs.
Implement a Mobile Friendly Responsive Design
This has been a website development best practice for a long time, but it’s still worth discussing since more than 50% of organic traffic comes from mobile devices. In order for your website to provide a great user experience on all devices, it must be built using responsive design so that it loads properly and functions seamlessly regardless of whether it’s being viewed on a desktop, tablet or cellphone.
While responsive design provides the best user experience, it’s also critical from an SEO perspective. Google’s algorithms prioritize mobile friendly websites so if you neglect this aspect of the development process, it will likely have a negative impact on your search rankings, making it harder for your audience to find your website.
Implement Website Security Measures
Website security is a critical component to address during the website design and development process. Maintaining a secure website will help you establish credibility and protect user data from hackers and cyber attacks. In addition, implementing the proper security measures will help you address an important ranking criteria in Google’s search algorithms. Modern websites that fail to implement security measures are more likely to be devalued on Google’s rankings, making it difficult for your website to rank well for relevant searches associated with your industry and offerings.
Make sure to adhere to the following website security best practices as part of the website development process:
- Get an SSL certificate – SSL certificates ensure that data transferred between your website and its users will be encrypted to provide security from cyber threats. This is an important step to safeguard user data, especially if you’re asking them to submit sensitive information, such as when making online purchases.
- Implement stringent login protocol – Always use strong passwords and update them on a regular basis. You should also implement two-factor authentication to ensure only authorized users are able to access the back end of your website.
- Choose a secure web host – Hosting your website on a reputable platform that offers free SSL certificates and other important security features will help bolster your website’s security.
- Install anti-malware software – This step will help you prevent malware attacks from compromising the security of your website.
Design for Accessibility
Website accessibility has become an essential item to address during the website design and development process. Designing according to accessibility best practices will ensure individuals with disabilities are able to engage with your website. Not only will this ensure you’re able to address the needs of these potential new customers, but it also signals to your audience that your company is inclusive, which will reflect positively on your company’s brand.
When designing for accessibility, make sure to follow the W3C accessibility standards. This involves:
- Adding descriptive alt text to every image
- Using strong color contrast on your web pages
- Creating keyboard-accessible links to aid navigation
- Including clear labels and instructions for form fields
Consider SEO Needs During the Planning Process
One of the primary purposes of your website is to boost your online visibility. For this to occur, it’s important for your website to rank well on the search engines, and this makes it critical to consider your SEO needs from the onset of the website planning process. This should start with keyword research that will drive the creation of the website’s navigation outline, ensuring that the pages included in the new website will contain the comprehensive information necessary to rank for your target keywords.
However, it’s important to understand that designing your new website with SEO in mind goes well beyond conducting keyword research. It also involves:
- Optimizing your URL structure to include the main keyword being targeted on the page in your URL slug
- Using keyword-rich headings on every web page
- Optimizing all images using keyword-rich, descriptive alt text
- Writing quality meta descriptions and title tags for all pages
- Providing valuable, keyword-optimized content that addresses the needs of your audience
- Building high-quality backlinks that will help boost your website’s authority score and drive traffic to the site
- Creating a thorough 301 redirect plan that ensures all links from your existing website are properly redirected to the correct page on the new website
Webolutions Can Help You Build an Effective Website for Your Business
Building a new website for your business is a complex process that requires the expertise of an experienced web design company. It takes a sophisticated understanding of website design and development best practices to ensure your new website is constructed with the proper foundation to deliver the exceptional marketing results your business needs to grow and thrive. At Webolutions Digital Marketing Agency, we can build a website that sets your business up for success.
As Denver’s leading web design and development company since 1994, our team has helped thousands of businesses both locally and nationally achieve the superior website marketing results necessary to gain a competitive advantage in their industry. Our team includes seasoned professionals who are constantly keeping their fingers on the pulse of the latest industry developments to ensure your new website is designed according to current best practices.
You’ll benefit from our exclusive Websites Right Methodology™, ensuring you receive a high-quality custom website tailored to the unique needs of your business. Our Websites Right Methodology™ creates a rigorous process used with every website we design. This process involves documenting your goals, collaborative planning and the creation of detailed mockups to ensure we’re aligned with the needs of your business. We also account for any custom functional requirements you may have during the planning process to ensure the final website is built to meet your needs today and into the future.
You’ll receive comprehensive project timelines that help you understand the progression of the website design and development process from our initial discovery meetings through the website launch, and we provide weekly status updates so that you’re always kept in the loop regarding where we are in the process. We handle all custom programming, provide integration with any third-party tools you use and conduct comprehensive pre-launch SEO work to ensure your website delivers the exceptional results your business needs.
Contact us today to schedule a free consultation. Webolutions serves clients nationwide from our offices in Denver, Colorado.
