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Why Good Graphic Design is Vital to Site Success By Todd Follansbee December 16, 2008
First appeared in Web Marketing Today
Abstract - site managers under estimate the importance of good graphics and a professional site appearance. We explain the impact of good graphics based on years of testing user behaviors. Good graphics are worth it and may be less expensive then you think to obtain. Here is a list of reasonably priced, excellent graphic designers. (note we do not benefit at all from these recommendations beyond some possible good will)
The Stanford Web Credibility Project (http://credibility.stanford.edu) found that 47% of users make buy decisions based upon the site itself. This implies that if the site is professional in appearance and supplies the essential information in a clear and complete manner, nearly half your customers will be comfortable making the buy decisions without further off-site research.
The 10-Second Window
In our testing experience, when customers are searching for products or services across a variety of sites in a competitive market, decisions about a site's professionalism are often made within 10 seconds of viewing the home or landing page. In this brief time customers gather a surprisingly broad range of impressions including: company size, product range, product offering, brand, and often price. They demonstrate emotional feelings of connection or dissatisfaction, as well as feelings of anxiety and/or comfort. They often decide if they are in the "right place."
Small business sites often underestimate the importance of a good graphic look and feel. Sites often exhibit unprofessional graphic design, yet site owners wonder why so many shoppers abandon the site. A graphic designer I know who recently completed the redesign of an e-commerce site, found that the new design resulted in nearly doubled page views, time on site, and purchases. Good graphics can make a big difference.
If you're in doubt about the effectiveness your present website look and feel, user test your site on passers-by. Ask them to view your site alongside competitor sites. Ask probing, open-ended questions about their impressions and feelings. This will give you a good idea of the impression your site creates to visitors.
What a Graphic Designer Should Accomplish
Here's what you should expect a good graphic designer to accomplish:
- Select an attractive, comfortable color palette which engages -- and even addresses colorblindness.
- Include attractive product shots that are large enough to reveal important elements along with informative, benefit-focused captions.
- Deliver a value proposition or branding statement in the initial eye path.
- Present simple and effective navigation which shows what viewers can expect to find.
- Drive the eye path to the important calls to action .
- Optimize all graphic elements for fast loading and contribution to conversion goals.
- Keep the page simple, clean, and effective .
- Insure that viewers can "get it" in 10 seconds or less .
Good graphic design is too important to your success to risk an amateur look and feel. Unless graphics is in your blood, bring in a graphic designer to help get your site right. However, in your quest for a designer, make sure your designer pays more than lip service to site usability. Good graphic designers may charge $100 per hour -- the price of a decent plumber in New England. That may seem expensive, but great graphics translate to increased sales. Make the investment.
Todd Follansbee is founder of WebMarketingResources.net . He is a usability and persuasion consultant who has been testing user behaviors on web sites for over 10 years. His methodology for improving conversions recently won a top ten award in Entrepreneur Magazine .For a limited time, Todd is offering a low risk, plan to support your conversion efforts on an ongoing basis. Let us handle your conversion optimization with an affordable monthly fee appropriate to your business. We design the plan to ensure that the ROI for our work more than pays for itself as quickly as possible. It is like hiring a usability team. Read more.
.This article is free for reprint however you choose as long as you request permission, provide a link to this site and acknowledge ownership. If you need more information or wish to discuss any aspect of this policy or the article please feel free to email me. - Thanks, Todd