When designing a website, there are countless factors to take into consideration besides whether it looks nice. Aesthetics are one thing, but usability and functionality make up arguably the larger piece of the pie as far as website visitors are concerned, and in order to keep your visitors happy and keep them coming back for more, it’s important you invest the time and thought necessary to create a solid and comprehensible navigation system.
Poor website navigation will have an adverse impact on conversions. It’s common sense – if users can’t find their way to your checkout, or they get lost along the way, they’re simply going to go elsewhere. In online business, and business more generally, it makes commercial sense to ensure it’s as easy as possible for customers to see what you have to offer and subsequently make a purchase – good, sensible website navigation makes that possible, and anything else is neglecting the needs of your customer and frankly detracting from your business.
The user experience is all-important online. Unlike a physical shop, there’s no face to face interaction online so you need to make sure you’ve got your best foot forward – it’s too easy to click the back button if a customer feels confused. Incidentally, providing a satisfactory user experience is also a good indicator to clients of competence and customer service, and by getting these right from the off you’re giving yourself at least a fighting chance of converting your visitors into customers. One of the easiest ways to ensure this is the case is to provide an easily accessible sitemap, which links to every page on your site – this is helpful both for users and search engines, and is certainly a worthwhile add-on to improve your site’s navigation.
When planning your website navigation structure, try and stick as closely as possible to the web standard. Most websites have a ‘contact us’ page – some are quirky and call it something else, but the safest option is to have your contact details on an individual page labelled ‘contact us’. Why? Because it has become the web standard, and your visitors are in the habit of finding contact details on the contact us page. If you hide these details elsewhere, you make your website less logical and simple to use – the easier it is for the user, the better, and by sticking to conventional navigational practices you can ensure your navigation is as smooth as possible.
A logical, consistent approach to website navigation is a critical component of good website design, and without it your visitors will quickly desert for your more usable competitors. A professional web designer should have the ability and experience to advise and create a navigation system that is both orthodox and accessible, to make it as easy as possible for your visitors to get around. By putting yourself in their shoes and trying to navigate to every corner of your site, you should quickly spot any problems with the navigation system, and hopefully make the necessary amendments to improve the overall usability of your website.
