Do people actually care how your website looks?
There has been a lot of research into how people judge websites, and if how they look actually matters. By now we all know that your SEO plays a large piece in how your website performs. And if you’ve heard us talk about websites you probably also know that the user experience (UX) is a key piece of your website’s success too.
But does a website have to also be pretty? It turns out, it’s a key factor in building trust with your audience. The stat we have seen referenced the most is from a Stanford study that shared that 75% of people judge a business’s credibility based on the design of its website. And if that isn’t enough evidence, 94% of people shared they may mistrust a website if its poorly designed. People are making these judgements quickly too. Most people form their opinion within half a second of landing on a website.
If you haven’t thought about this before, do a little test. Visit a website for a business you are familiar with (you can try our website for this too).
Open the website and after 5-10 seconds jot down your first impressions:
- How did the website make me feel?
- Do I trust this business?
- Is the layout clean and easy to navigate?
- Do I understand the brand and who they serve?
Now, visit your own website and do the same exercise. It’s helpful if you can have someone else do the exercise on your website too (especially if they are there with you, so you can observe their body language and facial expressions as they visit your site).
We have heard people say they don’t care how a website looks as long as it has the information they need. They may be in that 25% that doesn’t judge a website based on its looks. But it is so much harder to earn trust back than it is to establish trust from the beginning. If it doesn’t feel important to you, it may be worth doing some market research into your audience to see if it is important to them.
We also recommend looking at your competitors. If your direct competitors have websites that are both beautiful and strategic, you are doing your business a disservice if your website doesn’t stack up. You are also doing your potential customers a disservice if they are overlooking you based on your website, when in reality you have the exact service or product that could make a huge impact in their life.
Does this mean you have to burn your whole website down and start from scratch? Not necessarily. We have had a lot more requests for website refreshes lately vs complete redesigns. A lot of times your website has good bones and maybe even a good design foundation. But if it has been a year or two (or more!) since it was designed your business may have evolved over that time, and the design, messaging, and goals may have changed.
If you’re not sure if your website is working for you, let’s chat. We can identify if there are issues with your design, the user experience, accessibility compliance, how your site is coded, your page speed, and more. Knowing where there is room for improvement can help you decide if you should plan for a full redesign, a smaller website refresh, or if there are small improvements you can make yourself that will help your website shine in that first second when someone arrives. You deserve a website that you are proud to share, that will spark an instant connection with visitors, and make your website one that even the toughest critics will fall in love with.
We’re curious: do you judge businesses based on their website design?
