Photo: bamwebdesign
Communications companies are in the business of enabling others to communicate. How do they do their own communication? Among other things, their website is the readily available location from where a potential customer gets all his information about the communications company. And, it is this location that people are increasingly turning to.
The ease at which they can utilize a website is miles ahead of other means they can employ. Therein lies the importance of designing a website to beat the competition. Having a vision is very important but many designers forget the very purpose of building a website. We have three good ideas you can put to use in designing a website.
1. Functionality first
Photo: abrition
A website’s primary purpose is efficient network management. The present is the via medium to future. In designing a website, there are pitfalls that had better be avoided. A website’s first appeal lies in its being functional. Other factors like aesthetics, though very much desirable, cannot be allowed to overshadow the functionality of a website. The visually attractive features like the pictures of the communication equipment or maps of coverage of a communication company can be classified only as an augmentation. They cannot be taken to represent the business in themselves.
A communication company should assume that a visitor is a rookie and needs to be taken by hand and led through the relevant content in the pages of the website. He should be able to learn about the products or services with minimum possible maneuvers within the website. At the same time, you should take the possible wavering mind of a visitor into account and provide for alternatives without him being aware of being manipulated.
2. Follow the trend
Over the years, it has been proved that a 3-click rule works best in not letting the visitor lose interest. Before he even realizes that he had clicked his mouse three times, he should be there at the intended destination. A designer’s aim should always be to keep the visitor’s interest intact. If he cannot achieve this feat, the visitor will wander off to search engines to look for another communications company.
Speak to the customers instead of informing them with a stiff upper lip. You are not running a philosophical class. You are in the business of selling your ware and so you should make every effort to make the visitor feel that he is in good hands in the department of communication. Not all visitors can be expected to stay on the pages for a length of time. Offering free downloads of a brochure that has all the details that he may wish for is one way of procuring his continued attention.
3. Every Picture tells a Story
We had emphatically recorded above the need for the function of the website to be put forward as the first requirement but have also said a design pleasing to the eye is important too. Without giving a cluttered look, the website can be designed in such a way that an orderly placing of pictures and descriptions is perceived by the visitor. Remember a picture can speak a thousand words. Instead of meandering and pompous texts, a strategically shot and placed picture is to be desired. Endorsements from general populace are good but the same from celebrities and well-known figures inculcate a sense of credibility in the viewers.