First impressions are critical when a potential customer is viewing your website for the first time, with design being the element that will stick with them most. WebFX conducted a study in 2021 that revealed 94% of a company’s first impressions on their website are design-related. Going further, 88% of users are less likely to return to a site if they have a negative experience, and 38% of people will no longer interact with a website if they find the layout to be unattractive. That being said, having a visually appealing website that’s designed with the user experience in mind is the most important investment you can make for your business.
With more website builders on the market than ever before, it can be tempting to try your hand at designing your own website to save time and money. Unfortunately, in trying to save time and money upfront by not working with a professional website designer, you could cost yourself more in the long run.
There are a few important considerations to make when designing a new website that an experienced web designer will help you to navigate. These include, balancing visual interest with intuitive navigation, setting yourself apart while keeping instep with your industry, and understanding technical site elements that affect the user experience - such as accessibility for people with disabilities and responsiveness to different screen sizes. When you factor in all of these nuances, designing your own website becomes even more time consuming without much payoff for the effort.
Drag-and-drop website builders on the market are designed to be as simplistic as possible so that anyone can use them. Which is why there are currently thousands of websites that look nearly identical. Do you want your customers’ first impression of your website to be that it looks like everyone else’s? In saving money upfront by doing your website yourself, you effectively cheapen your brand. Remember, your website’s design plays a major role in how the world perceives your business. If you don’t invest in a professional website design, you don’t appear to a prospective customer that you care about your business.
A rookie mistake many people make when designing their business’s website is designing without the customer experience in mind. When you work with a professional web design agency to build your website, a good team will take time to understand your business and your customers’ journey. There are a wide variety of approaches you can take depending on your industry, audience profile, whether you sell products B2B or B2C, and more. A targeted approach with tailored copy, graphics, functionality, accessibility and user experience considerations will give you a website that not only looks good, but converts. If your audience can’t or won’t engage with your website, that’s money out of your pocket.
If you’re designing your own website, it usually means that you’re either a small business owner or a member of a small marketing team - meaning you’re likely already strapped for time and resources. When you factor in creating copy & content, designing custom graphics, troubleshooting issues, and conquering the learning curve - you can expect to dump hours and hours into creating your site. Say it takes 20 hours for a professional to build a website, multiply that by your hourly wage. Now take into account an additional 5-10 hours that will be spent adjusting to the learning curve and troubleshooting any issues you run into. How much did this cost you in wages? Can you take that much time away from your current job and finish your website in a timely manner? Would it be worth the extra money to have it built faster by a professional without the added headache? Building a site on your own - especially one that you might have to redesign in 1-2 years anyway - is usually not worth the up front time and money you save.
We understand that not everyone has the resources to invest in a professionally developed website that costs tens of thousands of dollars, but we also see firsthand how much a well-designed site can benefit your business. We developed Studio V with small business owners and marketing teams in mind. When you work with us, we pair you with a designer who can walk you through the process with best practices in mind so you can walk away with a professionally designed website that is easy to update as your business grows. If you want to know how Studio V can work for you, tag in our team.