Web design plays an important role in digital marketing. If the ecommerce store or site itself is poorly designed, it’s rarely possible to achieve the desired responses from customers. No matter how good a marketing campaign is, a poor website design will always get in the way.

That’s why it’s a must for businesses to invest in usability and aesthetics. Ask experts in web design in Oxford or in other locations around the UK, and expect them to agree that good design is essential in digital marketing. Promoting a brand or product is not just about running text, banners, i and video ads. The way the target audience perceives a website also matters.

Perception and experience

Marketing or promotional campaigns are necessary to bring eyeballs into an online store or ecommerce site. However, it’s the web design that holds the attention of target customers. It’s what convinces them to explore the pages further and look around for things they might find interesting. 

Web design is responsible for creating the desired first impression. Naturally, site visitors leave if they don’t like what they are seeing. They stay if they find something appealing. It’s indeed superficial, but it’s just how web users normally behave. Appearance matters, so it would be unwise not to pay attention to it.

Similarly, web design also moulds the experience customers have while going over a site or online store. A dizzying colour combination and poorly thought out or placed navigation buttons are enough to drive prospective customers away. An unfamiliar arrangement of page elements may cause the page to appear non-intuitive which can dampen the enthusiasm of visitors. 

Technical considerations

There are technical advantages to having a good design. It is not just about the looks. There’s more to the first impressions and overall customer perception. In particular, good design is vital in a site’s search engine optimisation strategy.

Websites that are mired by slow page loading times, cluttered page elements and frequent errors are most likely to rank low in search engine results. Too many 404 errors and other issues will at best hold back search engine ranking, at worst will ruin search engine rankings. Online stores that are regularly afflicted by technical glitches are sure to suffer SEO demerits.

While it is true that the first priority in web design should be humans, this does not mean that designers should disregard search engine bots. It is a must to observe best design practices and minimise errors. Bugs are not totally avoidable, but they can be reduced to a point that they don’t affect SEO scores.

SEO is a vital component in digital marketing. For many, it even serves as a primary factor in establishing an online presence. Online marketing efforts will not reach their optimum results in the absence of a search engine optimised website.

Good web design has many aspects. It is not only about creating a visually appealing and intuitive website. It also has a technical side that requires optimisation for non-human viewers that have a say on a site’s web visibility.