9 Qualities of a great website

We all want an effective beautiful website but how do we know if our website meets this goal?

Read our guide to explore the 9 qualities.  For those that want to see if their website passes the test - take our FREE Quiz.....or if you prefer if you prefer a done for you option book an audit with us and see how your website measures up.

  • 1

    Well Designed

    Does your website have the right balance?

graphic well designed

Why is design Important

Your design has the ability to provoke a response from your website visitor.  When your design is in harmony with your brand your ideal customer is more likely to respond positively.  From the use of colour, layout or even the use of white space you have many opportunities to create the right design balance for your brand.

When we think of great website design it can be easy to conjure up an image of a revolutionary, state of the art, all singing all dancing bells and whistles website. However, this more often than not is not what will work best and there are a few reasons for that. 

Definition

Being well designed relates to visual aspects of your website as well as its functionality.

Your design NEEDS to be in harmony with your brand

Key factors

of a well designed Website

  • Clear Navigation
  • A balance of Colour
  • Suitable Fonts
  • Style Consistency
  • Simplicity

Scroll down to next topic - Content Rich

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  • 2

    Content Rich

    Does your website communicate your brand?

graphic content rich

Why is content important

Your website content is typically the text and imagery and it has the ability to serve many purposes. It can inform and provide essential information about what your brand is about and the services you provide. By providing this content you are helping your ideal customer know your brand better and create familiarity. When done well your ideal customer will get a feel for the authentic voice of your brand and know the problems that you solve. 

Definition

Being content rich relates to how well your website uses typography and images.

High Value content supports brand recognition

Key factors

of a content-rich Website

  • Unique Difference
  • Giving Value
  • Speaking the same language
  • Smooth Reading

5 Qualities of a great website

5 Qualities of a great website

FREE MINI AUDIT TO HELP GUIDE YOU ON WHAT AND HOW TO ENHANCE YOUR WEBSITE

graphic for mini audit

Scroll down to next topic - Responsiveness

  • 3

    Responsive

    Does your website function and display well across all devices?

graphic responsiveness

Why is Responsiveness Important

Your website has the ability to look and work well on devices of all shapes and sizes.  However not every website succeed in achieving this, more often than not some of the key factors are present but not all.  When responsiveness is not achieved it can be disappointing and disengaging for your ideal customer. 

Definition

Responsiveness relates to how well your website adapts to being viewed from different devices.

A website readable on all devices

Key factors

of a responsive Website

  • All device screen views resembling each other
  • Layout spacing is well balanced
  • Typography resizing is in proportion
  • Order of stacking makes sense on small devices

Scroll down to next topic - Current

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  • 4

    Current

    Is your website maintained and up to date?

graphic current

Why is being current Important

There are many ways you can keep your website current and this brings you many benefits. It will vary on your needs how often you update and refresh your website. Events, blogs or even freshening up content all contribute to this.  Furthermore by providing consistent value your website will rank better with Google too. 

Have you ever visited a website and realised that it had not any new content for a long time how did it make you feel? Did you feel less confident in using their services? - I know I would.

Definition

Being current relates to how well looked after and up to date your website is.

Fresh content enhances perception

Key factors

of a current Website

  • Ability to update your website
  • New content created inline with need
  • Existing content updated and refreshed
  • Providing consistent value

Scroll down to next topic - Ask For Business

  • 5

    Ask for business

    Is your website serving its purpose?

graphic take action

Why is Asking for business Important

Asking for business is one of two actions that help to define the effectiveness of your website.  When your website is effective it is fit for purpose and serving your business well. The effectiveness of your website is key to supporting your business.  When it is at its most effective it is serving its main purpose.  Of course this will be individual to each website but there are key factors we can use to gauge how successful your website is.  There are the primary and secondary offers we present to site visitors.  When they are effective they result in action from our ideal customer. 

Your website exists to fulfill a purpose which is individual to your brand. When your ideal customer visits your website you have a primary action you want them to take and if they take this action your website has fulfilled its purpose.  Your primary offer needs to have prominence and be clear to your ideal customer for them to have every opportunity to consider and decide.

Definition

Ask for business relates to the primary action that you wish visitors to your website. 

Your primary offer needs to have prominence

Key factors

for a successful call to action

  • Distinct visually
  • User friendly
  • Logical step

Scroll down to next topic - Keep in touch

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  • 6

    Keep in touch

    Is your website creating connection?

Keep in touch

Why is Keeping in touch Important

The reason that keeping in touch makes the list is due to the higher likelihood that your ideal client will not take your primary offer even if your content is spot on.  This is not your fault its simply that not everyone who visits your site will be ready to take action – when you consider how people make purchases some decisively buy straight away while others take their time.  Just because a person doesn’t buy straight away does not mean we should not cater for them or let them forget about your brand, quite the opposite.  You know have the opportunity to develop the factors Know, Like and trust.   And because of this we could argue that your secondary action is more important. After all this is your opportunity to ensure you can keep in touch and you have the opportunity to make your primary offer again to the majority of visitors to your website.  

Definition

Keeping in touch relates to the secondary action that you wish visitors to make on your website.  Its a way to be able to reach out and engage with your ideal customer.

Your secondary offer needs to show value

Key factors

for a successful keep in touch

  • Peek interest
  • Show value
  • Inline with needs of ideal customer

Scroll down to next topic - Social proof

  • 7

    Social Proof

    Are you showing that you are the ideal choice?

social proof

Why is Social Proof Important

Social proof comes in many forms and serves a great purpose.  When a person is considering whether to choose your product or service over another having social proof adds validation that you are the right choice. The form that your social proof takes can vary greatly from award-winning in your industry to a simple review.  Most commonly used are testimonials and they can be video, text, or even audio.  The power of a well-placed testimonial can elevate your offering by bringing a unique aspect by validating for example how you have solved the exact same problem before.

 

Definition

Social proof relates to the examples given to your ideal customer that show that you are ideal for them to do business with.

Elevate your business With Social Proof

Key factors

for successful social proof

  • Friend recommendation
  • Customer views
  • Expert view
  • Social Media
  • Awards

Scroll down to next topic - Speed

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  • 8

    Speed

    Is your website loading quickly and effectively?

speed

Why is Speed Important

The speed of your website is not only an important quality but also crucial to the success of your website.  The expectations of your ideal customers are to have the ability to smoothly and quickly view your site.  This is why it is important to have that quality and the last thing you want is to keep your viewer waiting and they leave.

There are a great number of factors that influence the speed of your website.  Getting the foundation right is a great place to start and when you have professional hosting you get specifications that are the most supportive.  Another key ingredient is the image size and in this instance, bigger is not better as it can slow your site loading time and make it a very slow viewing experience.  With speed, there is a balance that we need to aim for to ensure a beautiful site as well as a fast-loading site.

Definition

The speed of your website relates to how quickly your website content loads onto the screen when a person views your website address.

Don't keep your viewer waiting

Key factors

for successful website speed

  • Image size
  • Complex animations
  • Hosting specifications
  • Cache

Scroll down to next topic - S.E.O

  • 9

    S.E.O

    Is your website SEO friendly?

SEO

Why is S.E.O Important

Your website is viewed and judged by bots as well as people and both are important.  Your website needs to be well received by both.  The human visitors enjoy and get value and the bots assess and rate your site as worthy to be highly ranked by google. 

So how do you ensure that both are true?  For S.E.O it's wise to understand and keep up to date on the latest  S.E.O guidance to ensure your website is giving the ranking it deserves.   Many changes happen in google preferences and when you put the right preferences in place your website has a great foundation.     

Definition

S.E.O (Search Engine Optimization) is the process of improving the quality and quantity of website traffic to a website or a web page from search engines.

Keep S.E.O To latest Preferences

Key factors

for successful S.E.O

  • Cornerstone content
  • Back links
  • Focus key words

I hope you've enjoyed learning about the qualities of a great website and if you'd like to hear more detail about one of these topics, or a different topic, do let me know.

Please contact us to discuss your next project.

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9 Qualities of a great website
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9 Qualities of a great website
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Explore the 9 qualities of what makes a website great and checkout our FREE self audit to see if your website measures up
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