Does Website Design Affect Business Revenue?

The emergence of e-commerce offers an exciting channel for consumer shopping. The positive impact of readily available fast internet, affordable prices in online stores, secure payment methods, and the constant influx of affordable technology are some of the forces making the future of e-commerce even brighter. But there is one problem; many businesses leveraging online presence report difficulties in attracting clients and generating revenue. So, does website design affect your business's ability to attract customers and ultimately impact revenue generation?

Here's the answer you seek.

The first impression is key.

It takes approximately 50 milliseconds or 0.05 seconds for your target users to form an opinion about your business website. This determines whether or not they like your website and whether they will stay or leave. As common as it is to believe that you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, business websites are subject to a higher level of snap judgments that may instantly influence perceptions of credibility.

But why?

It is a simple matter of preferences. The chances are for any given search query, there will be multiple search results that perfectly fit the needs of a specific user. Here is simple economics; many good options drive the price up, or in this case, the level of tolerance for poorly designed websites goes down. So, it is beyond any reasonable doubt that websites are judged ruthlessly and swiftly. And the best way to get rid of these snap judgments on your business's website homepage is to improve its overall design.

A great design can make your business stand out.

There are thousands or even millions of websites in operation nowadays, making being noticed in the digital space very difficult. But if your business website has a unique, innovative design, it will stand out from the competition and attract your target audience. Moreover, once more consumers discover your business website, there is a good chance more visitors will come due to positive online feedback and word-of-mouth.

It is also important to mention that 57 percent of internet users say they will not recommend a business with an improperly designed website, particularly mobile devices. Here is where responsive website design comes into play. Business sites that aren’t mobile responsive are by nature improperly designed as they don't offer an optimal end-user experience. And your business doesn't want its site visitors to be wary of recommending its website.

More than just brand consistency and trust

As mentioned earlier, your website design determines how consumers judge the integrity of your brand. Professional and trendy designs promote brand trust, while unprofessional and outdated website designs make users doubt your business's credibility. Another unique way a decent web design encourages trust is through brand consistency. Consumers are more likely to recognize successful and prominent brands by just looking at things like logos, styles, and colors.

For this reason, it is essential to ensure that your website has elements that make it easier for customers to identify your business. Therefore, every web page must have an excellent design that resonates with the target audience while ensuring consistency across different web pages and other online profiles for your business.

Suppose you have a unique design for every page in terms of styles, colors, and logos. In that case, your business website will appear unprofessional and unattractive. This will also make building brand recognition a hassle because your target consumers will not quickly identify elements representing your brand. If you cannot attract customers successfully, your sales and revenue will plummet.

Excellent website design is all about reaching out to clients

When creating your business website, think of your target audience. The specific content you put on your web pages should address your target market, not just everyone. And when you think of content, do not force something just because you like it; you are not the target audience.

For this reason, website design must include contact information while generating the best first impressions from visitors. Remember, people like web pages that allow them to connect to a specific brand, make them feel the brand, and allowed them to trust it. The point is, your business website serves as the face of your business.

Let's put things into perspective here. First, 85 percent of adults think that a specific company's website must be as good as or even better than the desktop version when viewed on mobile devices. So if your business website requires users to pinch and zoom on their mobile devices to view your content, those users are as good as gone. And they will be able to figure this out in just 0.05 seconds. That is revenue flushed down the drain.

Do you still need more convincing?

As of the second quarter of 2018, mobile devices held a 63% share of retail website visits. Given that 50% of United States e-commerce sales happen on mobile devices, the importance of excellently designed business websites cannot be overstated.

Suppose mobile devices alone account for more than 63 percent of retail website visits. In that case, there is a gap in the overall quality of the retail mobile website, resulting in lower conversion rates. Still, this number is primed to be bolstered by most businesses putting more effort into their mobile device shopping experiences. This is likely to be a large enough slice of the pie to successfully drive businesses with poor mobile experiences to take the right action.

Additionally, 38% of internet users will stop engaging with a given website if its content or overall layout is unattractive. So even after designing your website perfectly and getting past the 0.05 seconds of doom, you are not entirely out of the weeds yet. Any snag a user hits on your business website, whether it's related to navigation or design, can be fatal to your opportunity of turning that user into a qualified lead.

The point is; not all business websites that look great initially are perfect at getting the job done and converting target users into qualified leads. In fact, if a given website slips up at any point, the target users will not tolerate it. This is why the entire website design process should be left to professionals. Reach out to Emagine to schedule a consultation and we will begin developing a solid strategy that generates better results for your company.