Targeted web design can have a profound and measurable influence on how web users perceive and relate to your brand.
A study published in the Journal of Behavior and Information Technology concluded that visual appeal can be assessed within 50 milliseconds of a user visiting a web page and therefore branding and design implementations are crucial factors for consumers deciding whether they want to interact with your business.
Most of us consider ourselves to be logical human beings, and that when we evaluate a product for the first time, we have based our opinions on rational observations. However, the reality is, our decisions are influenced by another source of awareness. Harvard business school says that 95 % of our purchase making decisions takes place below our conscious awareness.
Within the first few milliseconds of landing on a web page, a decision based on a past relatable experience triggers an association to what the user interprets on your web page which influences the user how to respond.
By smart targeting and branding your web page, you engage and trigger a specific response from visitors, and small businesses need to be smart in understanding that this is what affects the attitude and behaviours of the choices that consumers make. Almost every aspect of your web page can be optimised and induced to emotionally influence your user’s experience, and therefore strengthening the weight of a positive outcome.
Encapsulation
Paying special attention to the key areas of your page by encapsulating specific items that you want the user to be struck by, keeps eyes focused and draws immediate attention to your product.
Colour and contrast
People emotionally respond to and associate memorable colour groups, contrast, and specific colour schemes. In web design this is called the “Von Restorff effect”, a design principle used to communicate a specific message by making a specific detail recognisable which means that the user is more persuaded to make a click inquiry.
White Space
Minimising background distractions by optimising White Space reduces the user feeling overwhelmed by too much ‘noise’ on your page. Instead, using white space to accentuate the user interface, makes it easier for your visitor to digest your information.
Images
A picture says a thousand words. We associate pictures to words as it’s easier for us to remember. For a better user experience and an increase in user awareness of who you are by incorporating emotive pictures can make a big difference to your click rate and to customers returning because they remember you.
Repetition
The first and last thing that your visitor sees is more easily remembered when your message is consistently spread throughout your pages, so, in between pages the user is being reminded of what is most important meaning that they are more likely to be impacted.
The way that users relate to your web page has a strong influence towards what users think and feel about your brand. The impact of targetted web design for small businesses is the difference between being recognised and users immediately relating to what it is that you do or being lost in a big crowd.
Citations:
Written By Daniella Smithson
- A study published in the Journal of Behavior and Information Technology concluded that visual appeal can be assessed within 50 milliseconds of a user visiting a web page and therefore branding and design implementations are crucial factors for consumers deciding whether they want to interact with your business. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01449290500330448
- Harvard business school says that 95 % of our purchase making decisions takes place below our conscious awareness. http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/the-subconscious-mind-of-the-consumer-and-how-to-reach-it
