I believe in judging a website by how well it converts visits to earnings and this can be achieved with “rigidity” … the measure of how much time a user spends on your site.
The longer they stay, the more likely they are to spend money – ask any good salesperson who’s worth their weight in salt!
Website Design, “Rigidity” and the 8 “C’s”
Your design should keep visitors on your site AND keep them coming back for more, so implement some of the “C’s” in your site design to improve your conversion rate:
1.Content
“Content is king,” so make sure your web copy is unique, fresh, useful to users, and fits in with the overall design.
Broadcast content with RSS feeds, emails and sms to your target audience and link to relevant sites to get your message across (automate this in website design).
Interactive website design (online games, weather reports, etc.) ensures that consumers spend more time on your website.
Include online FAQs, reports, research data, or response forms and integrate calls to action across your website.
2. Community
Get people involved on your website, social media plugins should be incorporated into your website design to further develop people’s perception of your brand.
3.Communication
It is important that prospects or customers contact you, display their contact details on each page, and use an email notifier to inform users of any website updates.
Your design should include a Blog and allow comments that give you a better idea of the needs of your visitors.
4.Personalization
Allow visitors to personalize landing pages and ensure website design is customer-centric with personal greetings and preferences.
5. Trade
Customers must be able to complete the entire purchase process online, so incorporating online registration, secure payment facilities, order tracking, and return policies into the website design is essential.
6. Convenience
Make sure your hosting company is trustworthy and keep your website downtime to a minimum, eliminate dead links, and make sure information is no more than 3 clicks away (plan during the initial design phase of the website).
The website design should ensure a pleasant user experience with easy navigation, good graphics, and clear typography.
7. Choice
The website should offer a wider selection of products than normal distribution channels or perhaps offer a product customization option for registered members.
8. Cost
We are always looking for bargains and the easiest way to find them is online, we offer discounts for online purchases or reservations (see kulula.com for a good example).
A lot of thought goes into website design, so always plan before launching your online presence (or reviewing your existing web design).