We’ve all visited websites that were complicated in design and overall hard to navigate. More often than not, visitors tend to immediately decide whether they want to stay on your site or go to another during the very first minutes of skimming through your content.
Digital trends are changing rapidly and for you to keep up with the flow of things, you need to do your homework regarding user experience to be able to provide your visitors with a smooth experience. Remember, your website has the potential to be your invaluable asset, and knowing your way around “user experience” is the key to achieving it.
If you happen to sell products or services online, then your website is inarguably your best salesperson. It is the place where potential customers come to look at your brand and when the website is designed poorly, it can significantly affect the way the customer feels about your offer. The 5 steps explained here are tailored to shed light on the intricacies of user experience.
Conduct Surveys & Audit
When figuring out which path to tread to improve user experience, your best bet is to directly ask your visitors themselves. Once you’ve gotten their opinion on your site’s accessibility and overall structure, you may compare those to, for example, the compliance standards/regulations issued by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Most experts agree that embedding a website accessibility toolbar like Userway, EqualWeb, ADAplugin or any other widget or plugin doesn’t necessarily equate to having excellent user accessibility. They’re also emphasizing that it is crucial that you relate both your visitors’ opinions with the opinions of professional accessibility auditors to fully abide by the guidelines presented in Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).
Good Communication Means Better Conversion Rate
To get to the bottom of why visitors chose your company to make a purchase, you need to have better communication with your customers. One way to achieve this is to have detailed phone sessions with them in which you can ask what exactly piqued their interest to the point of making the purchase decision.
This is where you can use that information to your advantage and optimize your user onboarding, all the while increasing conversions.
Better Sentiments Turn Leads into Customers
The idea is to have customers that are loyal to your brand and keep coming back to you instead of going to your competitors. Failing to provide an accessible website will result in customers discontent with your website and actually annoyed by the overall experience.
And when customers aren’t satisfied with your website structure and accessibility, they’re less likely to visit again. Therefore, make sure to build a positive user experience by establishing proper rapport with your customers.
Educate Users
When users land on your website, they’re there for a reason, and that is to either learn about something you’ve posted or if you’re selling a product/service. They’re there to know all about it before coming to a purchase decision.
It is then your job to provide all the necessary information for them to access easily once they’ve made their way to your site. If you have a relatively complex site, try to offer a brief demo on how users could properly navigate their way.
If you post content on a specific niche, you ought to offer topics that you think they might be interested in. In doing so, users get to know first-hand the quality of the content you share on your site, and once this is achieved, you’re one step closer to convincing them to visit again.
Consistency Matters
Your website should have a consistent theme to it. A site where a page is a design and the next is another is at best visually irritating! When the question “Am I in the right place?” pops up in your customers’ minds, chances are they’ll leave immediately. This is because an inconsistent design often translates into inconsistency, hence low-quality of products and services.
The Bottom Line
The more we step into the future, the more people will take to the internet to find what they need, whether it be information, products, or services. Having a foundation for testing your site’s accessibility can save you a world of trouble when thinking of creating a strong customer relationship.
User experience is a complex concept. To make sure you have it all figured out, you need time, money, and, most importantly, patience. Once you’re on your way to making your site more accessible, always watch for the subtle changes that happen after you implement the tips explained here. Ultimately, every website has its own unique structure. You might want to go beyond our tips and try out your own methods to reach the same outcome—an excellent user experience.