5 quick website changes to provide a better user experience
When consumer-facing websites first came to be, user experience was not much of a concern. Just take a look at some sites from the 90s — you might be surprised to see how far we’ve come in 30 years.
Today, user experience is everything for a company’s website. Having a poor user experience causes your web pages to get fewer visits and more bounces from the visitors you get. Fortunately, we have 5 quick tips for you to create a better experience for your visitors.
1. Make your navigation sticky.
A sticky navigation header allows users to navigate to other pages of your site quickly, no matter where they are. Instead of disappearing when you scroll down, a sticky header keeps the navigation header at the top of the page.
Having a sticky navigation is helpful because it keeps people on your page and makes it easier to find additional pages to explore. Sticky navigation is particularly necessary for long pages.
2. Update link and button copy.
Instead of “Learn More” or “Click Here,” use words that are more specific. Actionable words lead to more clicks and tell a user what to expect on the next page. Developing specific CTAs isn’t just helpful for user experience, but for SEO as well.
In an example where we are promoting this blog, instead of saying “Read More,” we would say “Explore Actionable Website Tips.”
3. Check the color contrast.
Checking color contrast on your website is something that very few businesses consider, but has a lasting impact on their site. By checking color contrast, you can increase visitors’ ability to perceive information.
Ensuring reasonable contrast also helps people distinguish text and better navigate your site. To check color contrast, simply enter your background color, the color of your font and the font size here. Then choose if you want your site to be AA or AAA compliant. For more information on those compliances, learn more here.
4. Add alt text to all images.
Adding alt text to images is a best practice for SEO and user experience that often gets overlooked. Adding alt text allows screen readers to read pictures so that they can distinguish the image contents. Your alt text should describe your image, incorporating a keyword, if possible.
5. Add videos and images to make your website more intriguing.
Adding videos and images to your website makes your website pop and keeps visitors on your page longer! Too much text on a page can kill the user experience; no viewer will spend time reading paragraphs of text on every page. But, if you shorten the text and break it up with a few videos or images, those pages tend to perform better and have a lower bounce rate.
Remember user experience.
You only get one chance to make a first impression. Don’t waste it on a website with a frustrating user experience. Instead, wow potential prospects with engaging copy, imagery and call to actions.
Making your website awesome will help you attract leads once they land on your page, but how do you get those visitors in the first place? Optimizing your website for search results will help potential customers find you when searching relevant questions. Set your website up for search engine optimized (SEO) success with this checklist.
