Basic Keys to a Successful Web Site

posted on: September 18, 2006

Once upon a time in the wild and wooly days of the internet, web sites looked like they’d been hacked together yesterday. Buyers were risk takers hoping the company was better than its appearance. That doesn’t work anymore. What follows are some basic principles of web design which you must keep in mind to be competitive in modern e-commerce.

Branding

Modern e-commerce demands you have a strong brand to separate you from your competition and give people a way to remember you. This is crucial to your success.

Logo. Design an icon that represents your company.

Color. Decide on a color scheme and make it universal. It should be on stationery, business cards, marketing proposals, sell sheets, office colors and of course products where appropriate.

Let people know who you are, and let them see you coming because of your consistency in approach. Acting like a serious business is a major step in getting potential customers to treat you like a serious business. Solid Cactus decided on our logo and color scheme, and it runs consistently through our entire company. We’re professionals, and believe we should have a professional look throughout our business. So should you, no matter how long you’ve been online.

Navigation is the Key

Finding what you want to buy and finding it easily is absolutely crucial to your business’ success.

Be simple. List your company information links on the header and your product information on the left nav bar. Keep the nav bar focused on product. Operate your secondary forms of navigation as drop downs.

Be obvious. Section names should be descriptive of the contents of the section. Give options. Provide multiple forms of navigation. Let people shop by product (TV) and brand (Sony, Magnavox, etc.).

Information Rules

When you look at your web site, think of yourself as a shopper. Ask yourself, “What do I want to buy from these people?” “What do I want to know about these people before I give them my credit card number?”

Company Information

Who are you? What do you offer? Where are you located? What are your policies on returns? What are your shipping options? These are important basic questions and should be easy to find on the home page. Put links to them at the top for easy access. Let people know why you’re in business, what makes you different and why they should shop with you.

Product Information

Tell us what you carry. Give us names, manufacturers and any other pertinent information about your product line. Make sure we can access comments of shoppers who love your company. A picture is worth a thousand words, but there’s no recommendation like a happy shopper.

In the end success usually comes down to a few basics. Get a brand started. Make your site easy to navigate. Provide all the background company information you would want to know if you were about to shop. And tie it all together with a nice professional design that remains consistent from page to page. You should look like an established company, even if you’re just getting started. It’s the beauty of the Internet, you can look big time. Take the time to make it happen. By the way, if you need help in any of those areas, we do exactly this sort of thing—call us. Hey, I’m a sales guy, I had to mention it….