How Website Design Can Elevate Your Digital Marketing Strategy
A digital marketing strategy includes several tactics, from search engine optimization to social media campaigns, paid advertising, and email marketing. Not surprisingly, small businesses struggle with the cost and time investment.
Statistical projections show that digital ad spending in the US will grow from $264 billion to $ 395 billion between 2023 and 2027. That translates into a massive increase of 50%. However, every dollar spent on your digital marketing strategy is worthwhile because you must create a robust online presence to survive and thrive.
The success of your plan depends on finding the ideal mix between different tactics. Unfortunately, marketers focus their attention on these elements and forget the foundation. Did you know that your website’s design can make or break your digital marketing strategy?
Let us explain the significance of website design for achieving results with your plan.
Why Pay Attention to Website Design?
Consider the statistics to understand the challenges of digital marketing in business promotions. In 2023, there are nearly 1.13 billion websites on the internet, with 71% of businesses having one. Making your website recognizable and memorable in such a competitive space can take a massive effort.
A successful digital marketing strategy starts with creating a website with visual appeal and functional ease. At the same time, it should offer a top-notch user experience to ensure high search rankings. Local Dudes Marketing highlights the significance of technical finesse, responsiveness, and creativity in website design.
Technical finesse and responsiveness keep your digital strategy on top of SEO results. Likewise, creativity in content and aesthetics entice visitors to convert and return for more. Clearly, a well-designed website can be a game-changer for your online presence.
How to Leverage Website Design to Elevate Your Digital Marketing Strategy
Now that you know the value of a good website design, you must empower your digital marketing strategy. Here are a few actionable design secrets to stay on top of your goals.
Start With a Clear-Cut Objective
The best-designed websites have a clear goal from the get-go. It gives you design clarity and makes your marketing initiative more laser-focused. First things first, you need to design your website with SEO in mind because that’s the only way it will rank for long-term search engine visibility.
Dig deep into the following questions while deciding on the design:
- Who is your target audience?
- Why are you building the website (sales, information, or branding)?
- What do you expect your audience to do after visiting your website?
- How will you set your website apart from competitors?
Based on the answers, you can define the goals, such as positioning your product or service in the market, capturing leads, building your online community, showcasing customer testimonials and reviews, and sharing product updates.
Research shows that website design links closely with user engagement, which can be another objective for marketers looking to cut through the crowd. You may have multiple goals, but ensure specific strategies to pull them off.
Prioritize Visual Assets
According to the US Chamber of Commerce, 55% of first impressions of a brand are visual. Prioritizing the visual assets of your website is essential for a winning design. These include the logo, images, videos, and infographics displayed on your website. Experts highlight the significance of designs that evolve with your business.
Beyond being aesthetically appealing, your website’s design should replicate the look and feel of your brand. Consistency fosters trust and recall value, so ensure your website looks like any other branding asset of your business. You can do it by sticking with your brand’s fonts, colors, and messaging when designing your website.
Win With User Experience
A flawless user experience elevates your search rankings through lower bounce rates, longer dwell time, higher click-through rates, and increased engagement. It also enhances your branding strategy because customers love brands that prioritize their comfort. Factors like speed, responsiveness, security, and navigation ease define the UX of a website.
Did you know that 88% of visitors bounce off websites that take even a few seconds to load? Lack of responsiveness accounts for 73% and poor navigation causes 61% of visitors to leave a website. These factors can affect engagement and trust in the long run. Moreover, poor UX translates into low rankings, affecting your digital strategy’s results.
Winning with UX is about covering the following areas of usability design:
- Usable: Easy to use
- Useful: Address user needs
- Desirable: Evoke emotions
- Findable: Easy to look for specific content
- Credible: Gain the trust of visitors
- Accessible: Easy to access for people with disabilities and limitations
Crafting an effective UX research plan is paramount in achieving these goals. There are many tools to help you learn how to create a UX research plan and gather valuable insights that contribute to the usability, usefulness, and desirability of your website or application.
Leverage Strategic Content
A successful digital marketing plan is also about integrating strategic content into your website’s design. Strategic content aligns with your business goals rather than just being there to fill the blank spaces. Statistics show that 82% of organizations use content marketing because the approach drives a significant increase in conversion rates.
Think of strengthening your website’s design with content elements like images, videos, and infographics. User-generated content such as testimonials and customer stories can take your brand a long way with trust and credibility. Place these pieces prominently on your website to maximize traction.
Conclusion
Your website is one of the most critical elements of your digital marketing strategy because it is the first point of contact for your customers. It also determines how search engines perceive your brand and rank it on SERPs.
You can achieve these goals with an impressive design that ensures a great UX that fosters brand recognition and recall. Fortunately, that’s easier than you imagine. Follow these tips to win the digital marketing game with website design.
