How A Good Web Design Influences Customer Behaviour

Great web design is no longer just about following the latest visual design trends. While nice to have, elegant typography and classy photography are small pawns in a complex digital game of chess. What elements capture your user’s attention? How can you anticipate their needs? How can you move them to act?

What does a good user experience mean? How does it influence your users’ thoughts and feelings, and ultimately shape their actions?

We will unearth these answers through a close study of online user behaviour and the latest digital statistics. Guesswork is a game we leave for complex escape rooms and crossword puzzles. There is way too much at stake, when it comes to your website. Especially when you consider that 88% of online consumers are less likely to return to a site after a bad experience. Much more than an online business card, your website can become your ultimate sales tool.

What are the elements on your website that affect customer satisfaction and can improve your conversion rate? Web designers Melbourne and across the globe refer to these following statistics to understand what influences customer behaviour.

Good first impression means users are more likely to stay and scroll

Important Statistics To Consider

• First impressions are 94% design-related
• 38% of visitors will stop engaging with a website if the content or layout is unattractive
• The elements consumers appreciate the most in website design are photos and images (40%), colour (39%), and videos (21%)

The Takeaway

Good looks certainly does the most in determining the first impression. Your website’s visual design, choice of typography and visual hierarchy of elements are important in helping users feel impressed and comfortable to stay.

Fast load means users will stay, not exit

Important Statistics To Consider

• Slow-loading websites lead to a $2.6 billion revenue loss each year
• 53% of users will abandon a page if it takes more than three seconds to load
• 39% of people will stop engaging with a website if images or videos take too long to load

The Takeaway

Consumers have increasingly less patience for slow digital experiences, especially after the pandemic. Whilst people might be more patient waiting in line at a theme park or at the doctor’s office, they certainly will not give their time if your website is not loading quickly and seamlessly. This includes the initial load, and subsequent loading or transition effects. Whilst some fade-in transition effects for text and imagery may look more creative, you should consider staying away from them as they may make for a more clunky user experience.

Professional web designing and hosting services are two key areas that can help you improve your website speed, if it is not up to the standards mentioned above. There are many factors that affect how a website loads on your users’ screens, and tweaking just a few of the right ones can elevate your website performance dramatically.

Clear menu means people are more likely to navigate to the next step

Important Statistics To Consider

• 38% of users look at a website’s page layout or navigational links when visiting a site for the first time
• 44% of website visitors will leave a company’s website if there’s no contact information or phone number
• 47% of website visitors check out a company’s products/services page before looking at any other sections of the site

The Takeaway

A website’s navigation is an extremely important functional port of call where users dock. If there are too many links and it is too overwhelming, users are more likely to leave. If there are too little links and it is not sufficient to help users navigate a complex website, users will also leave. The menu is much more than a visual header, it is the wayfinding of your website.

Responsive design means users are more likely to return

Important Statistics To Consider

• 67% of users are more likely to buy from a company that is mobile-friendly
• 57% of users won’t recommend a business if it has a poorly designed website on mobile
• Mobile traffic as a share of total global online traffic in 2017 was 52.64%
• 75% of consumers expect a consistent experience across every channel they choose to engage

The Takeaway

Many users often look up a business on their mobile phones first, especially if they are on the go or out and about. If their first impression is a good one and their interest is sufficiently satisfied, behaviour studies show that they will later revisit the business’s website on a tablet or desktop device.

Responsive design should not be a ‘shrunk-down’ version of desktop design. Ultimately the way elements should be broken down or stack up on a small vertical screen requires thorough planning and design intuition. 

Website with scannable content improves user comprehension

Important Statistics To Consider

• On average, users read 28% of the text on a page
• Users spend an average of 5.59 seconds looking at a website’s written content
• Eye-tracking visualisations confirm that users often read website content in an F-shaped pattern
• When test subjects encountered a story with a boldface introductory paragraph, 95% of them viewed all or part of it
• 82 percent of consumers feel more positive about a company after reading custom content

The Takeaway

Your website is not the place to regurgitate your product manual or the full contents of your company proposal. After all, when users are digesting your content in under 10 seconds, it is important to ensure your content is palatable for the scanners and the skimmers.

Original imagery, videos and content build credibility

Important Statistics To Consider

• Pages with original photos see almost 35% higher conversion rates than pages with stock photos
• Users eyes were fixated on a website’s main image for an average of 5.94 seconds
• 54% of consumers wanted to see more video content from a brand or business they support
• If your content includes compelling images, you can average 94% more views than your boring counterparts

The Takeaway

Stock imagery is a surefire way to look average and blend in. Custom imagery and videos are a winning combination to separating you from your competitors. Customers are responding much more positively to custom content, as they are used to seeing mediocre content and are reacting differently to websites that put in the effort in not just their products, but the images and videos that present their service and products

Quick Summary

These 6 aspects are a great way to start your web improvement journey. Following on from this, you can take a look at your own website analytics to see the difference a few changes can make. If you are unsure, you can also integrate some online survey feedback tools to collate genuine customer satisfaction. 

Understanding how your customers are interacting with your website is the first step in diagnosing the key areas you can improve your website. As digital evolves and user expectations change, it is important to continue to be open to feedback, in order to allow your company to continue to thrive online and provide great experiences.

If you have found this article helpful, but would still like more in-depth assistance or professional advice, feel free to reach out to our wonderful team of website designers and developers at Chromatix on 03 9912 6403. Whether you’re looking for a web designing and hosting company or developing and optimising, we would love to assist with your questions.

References: Blue Corona, Top Design Firms, WebFX, HubSpot, Statista, Salesforce, Nielsen Norman Group