Key Ways Web Design and SEO Must Work Together

Key Ways Web Design and SEO Must Work Together

The Internet is one of the most powerful tools that entrepreneurs can take advantage of.

Not only does it serve as a platform that businesses can use to offer their products and services, but it can also be used as a method to inform people about your brand. 

It’s important, though, to focus on more than just bringing people to your site. What’s the point in reeling consumers in if your site’s subpar design only drives them away?

Not sure where to start? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

Let’s take a look at everything you need to know about how to combine web design and SEO.

UX Factors

User experience is crucial. If your site is visually unappealing or difficult to navigate through, you’ll be wasting both your time and money on your marketing efforts.

Here are some of the factors you need to keep in mind.

Be Clear

It’s not good practice to make a product or service description that is full of buzzwords to hype up consumers and get them to make a purchase. All this does is create a rift between you and your audience, especially in fields with complicated jargon.

Instead, it’s best to be as straightforward as possible.

For example, let’s say someone’s looking for a company that offers graphic design services. Which business are they more likely to trust?

Business A: We offer cutting-edge, exemplary design services to both corporate and independent clients. Through our unfailing work ethic and a keen eye for artistry, we are sure to deliver stellar results that will surpass client expectations.

Business B: We’re a group of creatives who strive to bring clients’ branding visions to life. With a team of talented graphic designers who have over 50 years of combined experience, there isn’t a project we can’t handle.

While both companies may offer a similar level of service, Business B seems much more accessible than Business A.

Which brings us to our next point…

Be Human

Everyone likes to buy new things.

But, nobody likes to feel like they’re being sold something. The more you remind your audience that your brand is run by people just like them, the easier it will be for them to connect with you.

Simple ways to accomplish this include:

  • Having short bios for your major staff members (complete with photos).
  • Speak to your audience as a person, not a business (use people’s names when emailing them, use conversational language, etc.).
  • Offer loyalty programs that show your long-term customers how much you appreciate them.
  • Avoid dry copywriting at all costs. Always maintain your brand’s personality!

With a bit of effort, you’ll find that you can easily boost the level of engagement your audience has with your brand, leading to more success in the future.

Have Navigability

There are few things more frustrating than trying to find your way through a website that’s cluttered, visually busy, and has no logic to the way pages are organized.

If you don’t have a streamlined way for your audience to navigate your site, they might as well be trying to find their way out of a maze.

A simple—yet effective—way to make sure visitors get to where they need to go is to include drop-down headings at the top of the page.

For example, you could use tabs named “Men’s Shoes” and “Women’s Shoes” that drop down into respective lists of what you offer.

The possibilities are endless here, but you need to make it as easy as possible for your audience. If you couldn’t find something yourself on your site without already knowing where it is, you’ll have to rework your site’s navigability.

SEO Factors

Web design isn’t limited only to how your site looks and “feels” to your audience. There are other SEO strategies you can employ that work behind the scenes to help drive more traffic to your site.

These include…

Proper Keyword Research

It all starts here.

If you don’t utilize relevant keywords, there’s no way for your target audience to find you on their own. 

Luckily, Google’s Keyword Planner makes this process relatively painless. As long as you understand your audience and what they’re likely to search for, you’ll be at a great jumping off point when using this tool.

As you continue your research, you’ll have a better idea of what kind of content you should be creating, which will help your site grow and bring in more visitors over time.

Title Tags

Your title tag is the link that people click on when you come up in search results. As you can expect, this needs to be relevant and compelling enough to get people to click on it.

You only have approximately 70 characters to work with, and it might take you a bit to find the perfect headline.

Since title tags are only visible on search results, they can be easy to overlook. But, you still need to optimize them, which can be done by incorporating relevant keywords.

Pay Attention to Meta Descriptions

Meta descriptions come after the title tags, and their purpose is to briefly explain what the content is about. Make this information brief yet compelling to entice clicks from your audience.

You have a 300-character limit on your meta description, but 150 is the number you should shoot for. You’ll need to have your keyword integrated here, as well. 

Consider this yet another stepping stone that will push your traffic to great heights. 

Managing Web Design and SEO Can Seem Difficult

But it doesn’t have to be.

With the above information about web design and SEO in mind, you’ll be well on your way to making more conversions than ever before.

Want to learn more about Internet marketing and how it can benefit your company? Make sure to check out the rest of our blog!