Five Ways to Improve Your Website without a Full Redesign

Five site updatesWant to spruce up your website without a full redesign?
Here are a few ways you can do just that!

  1. Update Your Header.

    Improving your header can make a huge impact on the overall look and feel of your site. The header is located in the top third of your site which is what most people see in their browser without scrolling. Engaging content and graphics are a must, or why would the user bother to continue scrolling or exploring deeper into your site? Use catchy imagery and content that your users can relate to.

  2. Add a Call To Action.

    A great way to make an impact with your header is with a conversion message. The content, graphic, and call to action should all push towards one conversion. What should your conversion be? It’s easy to figure out- what is the point of your website? What do you want people to do when they are there? A great example of this is ‘Contact Us’ or ‘Buy Now.’ You want to guide people to make a certain action, and a great way to do this is through your messaging and imagery used. You want to connect with the targeted user persona with both familiar imagery and messaging. If the user can relate, then the chances of them converting are greater.

  3. Improve Your Navigation.

    Your navigation is crucial to the success of your website- it is the primary tool for navigating throughout your entire site. It needs to be easy to use, properly named, and functional. A best practice is to have a horizontal navigation above your header. We read left to right; so why not make your navigation do the same by stretching horizontally across your screen? It is also important to have your navigation items named correctly, this will make it easier for the user to find what they are looking for. Having drop down menus off your primary nav is another great way to let the user navigate quickly and efficiently to where they want to go. There is nothing more frustrating than a nav that doesn’t function in all browsers- so make sure to cross-browser check your drop down menus and navigation functions.

  4. Add Direct Contact Info to Your Header.

    This simple addition to your site can increase sales significantly, especially if you operate a service-based business. Giving your users a direct phone number or email address will give them the ability to reach you with ease as well as increasing the trust factor. Placing your number in the top third of your site allows users to find your contact information without navigating from your homepage. You want to make contacting you as easy and painless as possible.

  5. Update Your Layout.

    The layout of your site is the backbone of its success. Bring it into this century by center-aligning your site on the page and widening it to between 980-1000px. A visually pleasing layout can be easy to achieve with the correct balance, consistency, and colors. Balancing your columns makes your content easy to read and navigate through, 3-4 column layouts are ideal. A good example of this is Apple’s site. It has a standard layout of a horizontal navigation, a header with a call to action, 3-4 column layout for content, consistent colors and treatments, and is visually pleasing.

    screen cap Apples website

    Simple updates to your sites layout can be a great way to improve the overall look and feel- in turn improving the overall usability of your website.

There are lots of reasons to not do a full site redesign but with just some of these simple adjustments you can easily spruce up your company website!

See how Hall can help increase your demand.