8 Do’s and Don’ts of making a website in 2022
So as we write this, we’re completely “tearing” apart (obviously not literally) a website which we found for an interior design business. In no way are we going to let you know what website we’re looking at (we’re not that mean!), but the point of this blog post is to let you know what not to do, when it comes to designing your website, and why it’s best to hire a web designer in most cases.
There is a reason why we use a minimalist site design strategy, because gone are the days of creating ‘pretty’ websites, made up of too many colours (which don’t sit in the same palette), copy and images, just for the sake of adding them!
This particular website is for a business which clearly designs beautiful homes. The founder takes great pride in the business and the story behind the brand is a really great one! BUT, the website is doing them no justice!
If the website was designed and built without any kind of user journey in mind, and the aesthetics are completely off (you definitely want to get this right for a design business!), this business is potentially losing out on lots of leads and therefore sales.
8 Do’s and Don’ts of making a website in 2022
Find your colour palette. The colours should be consistent with your brand, even if you choose black and white, that's great, as long as you stick to these! Have the colours actually sit well with each other, and please please make sure your copy isn’t a luminous colour against a light background!
Choose a font which aligns with your ideal client’s taste buds! We have a whole other blog post on some great font pairings. It’s best to not use something like Times New Roman, Script or even worse … Comic Sans!
The primary navigation should consist of no more than 7 links! But, this is only if absolutely necessary. The primary navigation should follow a strict user journey, and not links to pages which completely overwhelm the user!
Please, please, please don’t use out of focus photographs taken on your iPhone, on your website! If you’re going to work with us we would strongly recommend our website + photography package. Professional photography of your end product is a great investment, and can last you a long time.
When a user lands on your website to see it, they need to be instructed on what to do next. This is where calls to actions (CTAs) come in. Don’t leave your user’s journey to chance and, don’t leave pages devoid of CTAs, as this strongly risks your user becoming confused and leaving your website after either not buying from, or booking you!
A website doesn’t have to become a dumping ground of photographs, for all of your previous work! Choose the best images of your best and favourite work. Showcasing these will leave your visitors wanting more! Psst, videos are amazing for your website too, check out our blog - How to Make a Promo Video.
Use white space! The more you clutter your website with unnecessary elements, the more you’re risking death by choice! You’re giving your user far too many options on where they could potentially go next. The user’s eyes also don’t know where to land & focus on, leaving the risk of them becoming overwhelmed and leaving your site! To read more about the psychology study on why more choice is not good, refer to our blog post - Why Minimal & Clean Designs Convert Better.
Finally, keep the website copy to a minimum. Good copy doesn't have to be lengthy, in fact the best website copy is kept to the point, is written out in simple language, and cuts out all of the unnecessary fluff.
Making Websites Win
For sure there is so much more to be added to the above list!
This book is written by founders of a company who also helped build websites for Amazon, Paypal and many more! And we pretty much used books like Making Websites Win, to understand the science behind web design.
