5 Ways to Make Your Website More User-Friendly

The modern consumer values ease more than just about anything else. Even if a product is inferior, more expensive, or not even fit for purpose, customers will often revert back to the lowest common denominator: availability. If a product or service is fast and convenient, it can be forgiven a myriad of other sins. (Think about how McDonald’s operates, for instance.) Given this current climate, businesses need to take extra care that their websites and their e-commerce stores function perfectly. Otherwise, e-commerce losing out on vital revenue. Fortunately, here are five ways you can make your website more user friendly –– so you never miss out on a sale again:

Improve Website Visibility

Consumers won’t normally put your company’s name into a search engine when they first begin looking for a product. Instead, they’ll type in what they want to find: record player, homogenizer, car repair service –– the possibilities are limitless, after all. You could have the most amazing website of all time, but if your customers can’t find you online, you’ll never get the results you desire. To this end, you need to “teach” search engines like Google to associate your product with your name. In an ideal world, you could achieve the level of association Kleenex enjoys with tissues for instance.

Blogging

One great way to ensure that you don’t get lost in the search-engine shuffle is to maintain a quality professional blog. Writing about the services you provide will improve your standing online. Plus, it’ll offer interested customers vital insight into your field. You can draw in new customers in addition to boosting your site’s domain authority with a well-kept blog.

Function over Flash

Everyone loves pretty web design. And for certain industries, it can be vital to have a beautifully designed website. But most of us simply need our websites to cover the basics. If your customers have any trouble navigating the site –– or can’t find what they’re looking for –– seriously consider dialing back the fluff on your page.

Eliminate Errors and Confusion

If you’ve managed to get a customer to reach the checkout stages of your ecommerce store, fantastic. However, you’re not quite over the line yet. Even at this late stage consumers can be put off by a confusing checkout system. Also, if your site proves faulty at any stage, most customers won’t give you a second chance to correct an error. Instead, they’ll move on to a smoother alternative.

Apply Common Sense

Even if you don’t know anything about web design, successful entrepreneurs understand their customers. Keep them in mind when you craft your website and you’ll likely land on a winning strategy. Never do something merely for the sake of it; make sure everything on your site serves a function, and cut out anything you don’t need. Your customers will appreciate it, and you’ll see that reflected in your sales!