How Much Damage Can an Outdated Website Design Cause for Your Business?
As we move forward into the 21st century, a company’s web presence has become a vital component of its brand identity. While in the past, a company interacted with its target market mostly in-person or on-the-phone, today it happens almost exclusively online. As a result, a company’s website design and user experience contributes greatly to its public perception.
If your website looks like it hasn’t been touched in years, is inconsistent with your brand identity and is not responsive (mobile-friendly), it tells people that your products and services may also be outdated. Credibility (and business) may be lost in seconds if your web presence is not carefully curated to present a cohesive and socially relevant brand identity.
Remember, people’s attention spans are shorter than ever and if within those first 5-8 seconds they don’t know whose website they are on, what they offer, and how to get to the information they are looking for, you may be sending a potential client to a competitor’s website and losing out on unknown opportunities.
A website’s design and user experience, much like the packaging of a product or the lobby when you first enter a building, must immediately set the tone for your brand. And as they navigate through your website, it must tell a story that is cohesive with your brand identity, is compelling and accurately depict your offerings.
In order to determine what your website’s story will be, first determine who your audience is. Decide which demographics and industry you are trying to appeal to and design your website’s visuals accordingly. For example, if your customer base is mostly comprised of millennials and Generation Z, consider more vibrant colors and engaging visuals. Meanwhile, if you are primarily targeting businesses, your aesthetic will most likely be sleek and clean with a more understated color scheme.
An example of a website that stays true to its brand identity and caters to its business audience, is the website we designed and developed for Brewlytics, a data analytics product for TriVision’s client, NASK. Not only did this project involve TriVision’s branding and website expertise, but also naming services, messaging, and marketing strategy. The visual aesthetic of the website – a rich navy blue combined with lighter shades of blue and a complementary orange color – stays consistent with the new NASK branding and website which we have also developed. The new NASK brand and website will be launching to the public later this fall.
Remember, whether you have a static website simply to represent your brand, or a website that has constantly changing content, it is essential to consistently maintain your website’s look, functionality, security and search engine rankings in order to sustain visibility in this cluttered digital world.