Have you decided it’s time to finally launch your website? Perhaps you read our last blog post, 6 Things to Consider Before Launching a Website, and you know it’s time to take the leap and get your passion, services, and rockstar attitude out into the world. If that’s you, you’re in the right place. We’re sharing 13 tips straight from our website design team to help you customize and launch a website that is true to you, easy on the eyes, functions at the highest level possible, and above all, converts your leads into paying clients and lifelong fans.

 

Tips From our Graphic Designer

Everybody loves a pretty, eye-catching website, but there is so much more to a website design than choosing pretty colors, fun fonts, and scroll-stopping pictures. While those things definitely come into play, there is a lot of strategy that goes behind a website’s design. Your website’s design allows your ideal customers to see and feel your style and vibe, building a relationship right off the bat. So what are the key things to keep in mind when designing a website? Here’s what our graphic designer had to say:

 

Tip #1 

White space is everything, don’t be afraid to utilize it. White space breaks up the elements of the design, making your images and copy stand out. A website with white space looks cleaner, more professional, and is easier to read.

Tip #2

When choosing fonts, be sure to have a difference in font thickness. Your fonts should have contrast between the header, subheader, and body text. Play around with different font pairings and find fonts that work well together and stand out independently.

Tip #3

Position your photos strategically. When placing photos, be sure that the body/face of the person in the photo is looking towards your content, not away from it. You want your images to draw the reader into your content, not away from it.

 

Tips From our Copywriter

When you start creating your website, an essential element is your website copy. Your website copy is an essential part of your website and helps your ideal customer get to know you better, learn what you stand for, and connect to you through your story and writing style. The copy on your website is what builds a know, like, and trust factor and helps them connect to your message and walk away knowing that they need what you have to offer. So how do you get started with website copy? What’s the strategy behind it? Here’s what our copywriter had to say:

 

Tip #4 

Do a massive brain dump. Don’t be afraid to get messy here. Get all of your ideas out on paper of what you have to offer, who you’re speaking to, what they need, what solutions you’re providing, what success stories your clients have had, how they’re going to get your services, and what common questions they’ll have.

Tip #5

Get clear on the vibe you want your website to have. Write down words and sayings that describe you and your brand. Are you going to speak in a more fun and conversational tone or a more professional tone? Let your personality shine here!

Tip #6 

Decide on each page of your website’s purpose. Ask yourself what your ideal customer will walk away doing on each page. Learn more about you and your team? Sign up for an email list? Connect on social? Grab a freebie? Click to read a testimonial? View your portfolio?

Tip #7 

Outline your copy, take a break, and come back to it with fresh eyes. Use your brain dump list, words, and sayings to fill in your copy and add personality, keeping each page’s purpose in mind. Don’t be afraid to be yourself and let your uniqueness and writing style come through in your copy. People want to get to know the real you. Use powerful words that grab attention and keep it.

Tip #8

Think clear, concise, and easy to read if just skimming. Break up large chunks of text with headers, sub-headers, call-to-action buttons, and combinations of fonts.

 

Tips From our Developer

Now that you have your eye-catching website design elements and storytelling copy that makes readers want to hire you ASAP ready, it’s time to build your website. This is the behind-the-scenes tech side of designing a website that you often don’t see…website development. A website developer’s role is to put all of the design and copy together using their coding and tech expertise to ensure the site flows well, functions properly, and has all of the plugins needed to make the user experience the best it can be. So what do you need to consider when developing a website? Here’s what our website developer had to say:

 

Tip #9 

Review the design to check for flow and functionality. Take the website for a couple of test drives to ensure that all pages, buttons, and functions are flowing correctly, links are working, and the user experience is seamless.

Tip #10 

Use a reliable and effective theme builder that allows you to customize the style of your headers/footers, sidebars, fonts, colors, etc.

Tip #11

Download all assets and pictures needed for each page. This makes it much easier to design and build, so you aren’t left searching for what you need. A little prep ahead of time will make your life easier.

Tip #12

Upload the necessary plugins to ensure added functionality needs are met when displaying additional content on your website.

Tip #13 

Set up the defaults and customization before building the pages, such as brand colors, fonts, button formatting, etc. Again, a little work upfront will make it easier to grab what you need while you’re building.

 

We hope these 13 tips for making your website stand out have given you the confidence boost you need to tackle each element of the website design process and understand the how and why behind website design, copy, and development.

To help you work through the process of creating an awesome site, we’ve created a quick quiz to help you determine what path you should take based on your goals to get your website launched.

Take the quiz here!