Your website is the first piece of touchstone that your visitors will encounter when they visit your site. You’ll want to make sure that it’s a reflection of your brand, conveying your values, vision, and offering users a fantastic user experience.
You can use a variety of tactics to help your website stand out in the crowd, from the visual design of your site to the copy you use to guide users through the experience. You’ll want to use your website’s design to guide your audience members through each step of their experience on your site while also marketing and advertising your business.
Let’s examine each part of your website’s design – from the headline through to the footer – and how you can use each element to improve the user experience (UX) on your site.
Headline
Many publishers will tell you that the first two or three sentences of the article will be what a user will remember most about the piece. These are the first few words that your visitors will read when they are entering your website. You have 280 characters to play with, so use the majority of this character limit to add value. You could use keywords, define important terms, or use intriguing sentence structures to grab your audience’s attention.
If you have more than three sentences, consider using a tool like GAP (Get Attention Powered) to slice your article into shorter bite-sized morsels. If you need to write an article to meet the character requirements, make sure that it’s engaging and interesting.
Opening Paragraph
The opening paragraph is the first part of the story that your audience will read before diving into the meat of the article. For optimum effect, use this space to hook your readers and draw them in to explore the rest of your page. You have approximately 275 words in which to grab the attention of your readers. Make sure that you keep your opening paragraph short and sweet. If you have a longer opening paragraph, consider breaking it up into several smaller segments. Consider the value that your opening paragraph adds to the piece and the impact that it has on the user experience (UX).
Anchor text is also called the ‘headline’ or the ‘sub-heading’, and it’s presented in a larger font, usually in a bolded style, above the initial paragraphs of text on your page. This text is typically a call to action (CTA), such as “shop now”, “learn more”, or “visit site”. When a user clicks on the anchor text, they’ll be directed to your website to continue the journey of discovery.
Content
After your opening paragraph, you have a couple of options. You can write an “Info” or “In Depth” section that goes into more information about the subject matter of your article. Or, you can write an “A Bit of History” section that draws on your expertise to shed new light on an old topic. In between these two options, you have the freedom to write whatever you like.
Whatever you do, make sure that it’s relevant to your target audience. If you’re writing for an education website, then you’ll want to ensure that all of your content is aligned with the national curriculum for students to identify with. If you’re writing for a creative industry website, then you might want to consider using informative sub-headings and adding engaging images to make your content more attractive.
Call to Action
As previously mentioned, the anchor text, or ‘headline’ of your article is the text that your visitors will see at the top of their screen when they click on a link. The goal is to draw the user’s attention to an action that you want them to take on your website. You have three options for a CTA:
- Sign up – If you want your audience to sign up to your email list, use an opt-in form – which gives you the opportunity to monetize the viewer’s email address through online ads – to collect their contact details.
- Buy now – If you want your audience to visit your Etsy shop, use your affiliate marketing skills to point them to a shop that you’ve vetted and know is reputable. When they make a purchase, you’ll receive a small commission.
- Learn more – If you want visitors to move from a general knowledge blog post to a more in-depth article where they can learn something new, use an “outro” or a “call to arms” – a short section at the end of your article, typically used as a mini-lesson or a series of steps – to get them to the next logical phase of the buyer’s journey.
Your call to action should match the “shopping” phase of the buyer’s journey. If you’re writing for an e-commerce website, look to existing shopping carts to get an idea of what to do next. If you’re writing for a creative industry website, then you might want to consider using the word “inspire” or “create” to provoke thought or action in your audience.
Style
While many people are drawn to articles because of the value that they provide, you might want to consider using different writing styles or techniques to grab the attention of your audience. If you’re writing for a creative industry website and you want to create a more informal, likeable tone – consider using italics, bold, or underline to make your text more accessible.
You can also vary the way that you structure your sentences to add more interest. For example, if you’re using a tool like Hemingway App you can add a few extra words in between your sentences to create a more natural, flowing dialogue. Addressing your audience as “you” instead of “I” makes a text more relatable, and using active verbs in your writing keeps your text more engaging.
Images & Layout
With the exception of webpages specifically designed for reading on a tablet, keep images to a minimum. Instead, use text to describe what the image is or what it represents. It’s more beneficial to have less but quality images than cluttered, low-quality ones. This will help make your text more visible – and therefore more relevant – to your target audience.
Include a contact email address, website URL, and social media handles on all of your website’s pages. Make sure that these addresses are prominently displayed in the same place on each page. Layout your pages using a one-column or two-column format. The more readable the page is for humans, the more attractive it will be for search engines.
Footer
Whether you have a one-page website or a complex multipage website, your footer will remain the same. It is a designated area at the end of your webpage that contains important information about your website, including the heading from your H2 tag, contact details, and links to social media.
Your footer will stay relatively static, so it’s a great place to put important announcements about your company and opportunities for customers to keep in touch.
Make sure that the links in your footer are relevant to the user’s journey on your website. If they have reached the conclusion of the article, then there’s no harm in pointing them to more in-depth information on your blog – or a related article that will further engage them.
When designing your website make sure to stand out in the crowd. Remember, your website, along with all your content, will be the face of your brand. Make sure that it reflects your personality, values, and what your customers want to see. With a little bit of planning and research, you’ll be able to make your website the best that it can be – and help your business stand out in the crowd.