November 4th, 2020 | Updated on June 28th, 2022
You put in hours upon hours of work into your website. You make sure that every detail is perfect and you’re excited to show your work to the world.
But then you notice that it’s not getting as much engagement as you thought it would.
“What did I do wrong? Why aren’t people visiting my website? How can I make them see the website that I have worked so hard for?”
Making a beautiful website is one thing but making it more engaging is another. Here are 10 tips to help you make that awesome website more engaging.
1. Design And Aesthetics
People look first before they read. Our minds happen to possess a natural limitation in that we are strongly influenced by the first piece of information to which we are exposed. This is called the first impression bias.
You’ve heard the saying,“first impressions last”? Well, that’s backed up by psychology. And it’s why you need to make sure that the first impression you make on your viewer will get you off on the right foot.
A common mistake for beginner web designers is trying to cram everything there is to be said on the very first page seen by a visitor to your site. The designer might be concerned that the viewer may not stay long enough to get to the good part.
But unfortunately, when there’s too much on the page, it all just looks crammed in and disorganized. That’s definitely not a good first impression.
An example of a web design with too much information.
I understand that you have a lot to say to your visitors and you’re excited to show them the quality and value in your content. But if they get overwhelmed from the very start, they may not stay long enough to notice what you have to offer.
The use of negative space is easy on the eyes and gives the page a clean and professional look. Used intelligently, negative space helps direct your visitor’s focus to your primary message. It is in this focal point that you can maximize your content to entice visitors to your site to want to see more.
If you have a platform for backup online storage, you’d want to show your viewer that you are organized and that you have a lot of space to offer them. You’d want to tell them that your platform is secure and that it can help optimize their workflow.
An example of an intelligent use of negative space
You have to look the part to play the part. Design, and art itself, is a process of communication. You have to convey to your viewers, and not just with words, that you are a professional and know what you’re doing.
“How do I want my viewers to feel when they visit my website?”
In thinking about the answers to that question, you will better identify the elements on your website that will contribute to that feeling.
2. Colors And Typography
Your colors and fonts affect people’s perception of you more than you might think. As mentioned above, for you to better communicate with your viewers, ask yourself what you want them to feel when they see your website. The colors and typography you use play a big role in achieving this.
Looking into the psychology of colors, each color is associated with a different feeling. Here are a few examples.
- Red
Passionate, powerful, energetic, friendly - Yellow
Joyful and optimistic - Blue
Calm and soothing
Choosing a color that helps you direct your viewers’ emotions helps them find something they identify with, something they can relate to.
Statistics show that 85% of consumers say that they buy a product just because of its color. If you can tap into the psychology of identifying with their favorite color, then you’re likely to engage more with your potential customers. You’re presenting them with something they like. ike!
Your choice of font type also contributes to the feeling you want to communicate to your viewers. Here are examples of font types and what they communicate:
- Serif
Tradition, respect, reliability, comfort - Sans Serif
Stability, objectivity, clean, modern - Script
Elegance, affection, creativity - Modern
Strong, progressive, stylish, chic - Display
Friendly, expressive, unique, amusing
Putting all of these things together is an important part of engaging your viewers.
If you’re a company that offers unique staycations and experiences, you’d want to use the right colors and typography to make people feel at home. You would use cool colors for your negative space; directing your viewer’s eyes to the warmth of the home. Also, it would be ideal to use a Sans Serif font type to communicate a modern and stable feel.
3. Pictures And A Thousand Words
A common theme that we’ve talked about is using materials that will make it easier for people to identify themselves and relate to your content. Choosing the right pictures and videos is no exception to this rule.
Using photos that help people picture themselves in or with your content, helps them identify with your content. Photography can give your website a sense of professionalism and a distinct personality.
You would want to showcase your work that focuses on warmth. Not only does it look really good, but it also invokes a feeling. As your viewers scroll down, they start identifying themselves with it. They start thinking, “I want that, I want to be like that, I want to take pictures like that.”
Photos take your visitors on a journey and tell a story. They introduce your brand and give an idea of what can be expected from your service.
Find photos and videos that focus on you and your website. Make sure that they are cohesive and connected to your content.
Another element to consider would be the size of your photos and videos. You would want your website to look crisp and professional; therefore, the issue of resolution comes into question.
The bigger the size of your photo or video, the longer it will take your website to load when people visit. If your website takes too long to load and is not accessible to people who have minimal signal, you might lose them before they even see your landing page.
4. Compatible Across Multiple Devices
Making your website pleasing to the eye is one thing but making it pleasing to the eye on different platforms is a different art in and of itself. Not everyone will access your website on a computer or a smartphone.
Being able to accommodate these viewers will help widen the scope of your audience. The very idea that you take the extra steps to make sure that your website is available and still aesthetically pleasing across all devices, sends a message that you think about your viewers and the quality of their experience on your site.
5. Social Media
Social media is everything. It’s free and all you’ll need are the right words and engagements. Being available on these platforms shows your viewers that you are both accessible and flexible.
Having posts that contain links to articles that lead back to your website would be an avenue of possible engagement.
This is also the easiest, fastest, and cheapest way to make genuine connections with your potential visitors. Acknowledging and interacting with your viewers on these platforms shows that you listen to their opinions and invite them to have a conversation with you. This ultimately leads to more engagements.
Another simple way to bring your content to social media platforms is offering the option of directly sharing your content on these platforms. A small share button can always open doors for further engagement.
6. The Power Of Social Proof
You don’t have to hire someone famous to vouch for you or your product. When users see other regular people that they can relate to, giving positive feedback about you and your product or service, they are more likely to engage with you.
A study shows that 90% of respondents claim that positive online reviews influence their buying decisions. A lot of successful businesses feature loyal customers’ reviews of their products. When potential customers see these reviews on your website, they’re much more inclined to do business with you.
7. Feedback
Sometimes we overcomplicate things and overlook the simplest of methods to get engagement. Asking questions is a sure-fire way to engage because you’re directly interacting with your viewer. If they interact back, you’re in business!!
Giving your customers a voice is a big plus for your website. Psychologically, it’s very satisfying to have the chance to take a survey and be heard; to have a voice in the decision-making process and know that their suggestions matter to you.
People love to share and be heard. It’s the very foundation of society. Giving them this option will boost your website engagement exponentially.
8. Tell a Story
When you tell stories, you bring people into a world that you’ve created for them. Now, in making a story work effectively in your favor, we need two things:
- Speak With Authority
People are more likely to listen and focus if they see that you are an authority on the content that you are sharing.
Part of being authoritative in your content is making sure that what you’re stating is factual. It also has to be valuable to your reader.
Backing up your content with research and studies helps your viewers know you did your research. Statistics, research and studies are excellent elements to add that will show your viewers that you know your subject matter.
Speak with a human heart.
- Speak With A Human Heart
We need to be formal when dealing with clients because business is business. But to be able to change viewers into clients, we need to be human and speak with passion and heart.
It’s more inviting when you’re greeted by a person who shows genuine interest, warmth, and concern compared to speaking with an AI who has pre-recorded responses to your questions. Nothing beats a genuine connection with people.
If your viewers see that you are willing to establish a genuine human connection with them, they are more likely to reciprocate that engagement with you.
Finding the right balance between these two elements is what makes Fortune 500 companies the best of the best. They are both human and authoritative with the way they market themselves.
9. Contact Details
Picture this. A viewer goes to your website, enjoys your content, and starts to go down the rabbit hole of your website.
- They then decide to reach out to you because of several possible reasons:
- They want to tell you how good your website is
- They are excited to see your future content.
- They have suggestions for possible content
- They want to collaborate or work with you
Sounds perfect, right? But then, as they browse your website trying to find a way to contact you, they don’t find anything.
They sigh; they wanted to work with you but don’t know how to tell you. They can’t reach you if they don’t know how.
That’s a loss on your part.
Make sure that your contacts are accessible and always visible. It’s also important to note that making yourself available on various platforms and devices raises the possibility of them contacting you since they find it easy to reach you.
Don’t just limit yourself to phone and email. You can also include your social media handles since it’s the easiest way to be contacted these days.
10. About Us
When visitors or potential clients find their way to your website, not all of them will know who you are, what you stand for, and what you can offer to them. Dedicating a part of your website to tell about these things will help your viewer have a full and holistic understanding of what you’re about.
When you introduce yourself, you take the first step in establishing a relationship with your viewer. They start to become more comfortable with you. They would want to reciprocate the engagement with you and in the long run, have a long-standing relationship with you.
Using WordPress website design, you’ll be able to ensure that the layout of your website can both maximize and utilize a navigation bar that can direct your viewers to your “About Us” page.
Key Takeaway
If you’re not sure if your website is engaging enough, ask someone else to visit it. You designed your website so it might be difficult for you to notice what’s lacking. Listening to your viewers, making yourself available, and helping them find something they can identify with on your website are the key components in making a more engaging website.
Will you be trying out any of these different ways to gain more engagement on your website? I want to hear how these tips worked for you!
