Given that creating landscape designs is a large part of landscaping businesses’ work, we think they, more than most businesses, will appreciate the need for top-class responsive website design. While landscape design and website design are two completely different skills, the fact that both need to be completed to satisfy clients is one common factor. As for the website design that a landscaping business has, it certainly plays a massive role in how well that website converts visitors to prospects who contact the company for more information or to request a landscape design quotation, hopefully. Website design also significantly influences how well websites rank in search engines such as Google. Good rankings can mean a flood of more traffic, and low rankings mean just a trickle. So, with good web design having such an impact on how your landscaping business might perform based on its effect on visitors and the amount of traffic it receives, we thought it would be helpful to highlight some web design basics so that you and other landscapers reading this who feel their website is not ticking all the boxes have some avenues to pursue, especially if you ask a web design agency to revamp your website. Optimising Your Website’s Structure One of the core principles of a successful website design is having a structure that works. Although this will differ somewhat between website types and what the primary purpose is, there are some core common elements. These include a Home page, a Privacy page, a Terms and Conditions page, an About Us page, and, importantly, a Contact Us page allowing visitors to get in touch. A Page For Every Service And Every Location A big mistake some landscaping websites have is they have every service they provide listed on one generic page and do likewise for the locations their business targets. The website should instead be designed with a single page for each service and one for each central area. Doing so multiplies the number of opportunities to rank for searches for these services and sites whenever they are typed into the search box on Google.
WordPress can justifiably claim to be the world’s most popular CMS (content management system), and the data will back them up. It is estimated that there are around 1.4 billion websites online, and WordPress accounts for no fewer than 455 million of them, making them the #1 CMS. That accolade has not happened by accident, and it is a tribute to the many years of updates and improvements WordPress has been through. It also bears remembering that WordPress is an open-source platform, which means many people will have contributed positively to its phenomenal success. If you are not yet using WordPress, perhaps because you have never owned a website but are planning to create one, or you use another CMS but are unhappy with it and thinking of switching to WordPress, you might be wondering what the reasons are as to why it would be the correct choice. Wonder no more, as below we have listed and expanded upon the top ten essential reasons WordPress is the best CMS for websites. #1 – Easy To Use For All Many surveys of WordPress website owners and those who use WordPress frequently, such as web designers, will have this in the top 3 positions as to why WordPress is so popular. It is undoubtedly one of the most accessible platforms to use, and even for those who would not regard themselves as technically minded or web design savvy, WordPress is certainly simple enough for them to manage or even build their websites. #2 – Extremely Secure Whilst no website could ever be 100% secure, especially from determined hackers, it is a safe bet that WordPress websites are some of the most secure online. This is for several reasons, including security plugins that provide advanced security options plus password control, two-factor authentication, and regular security updates from WordPress, ensuring every WordPress website has the best and latest protection.
Some business owners may not yet be convinced that they need a professionally designed website and are prepared to continue with their existing site, or worse, continue with no website and thus have no online presence at all. Their reasons may vary, but they may include not knowing where to find professional web designers or a fear that the costs of a new website may be beyond them. We can address both right here, as Slinky has web designers and programmers who can build the website, and as for cost, we have packages to suit all budgets. We even have monthly payment options so that every business in Perth, regardless of size, can benefit from a new, professionally designed website. If, even after these reassurances, you are still not convinced that a new website can benefit your business, it may be more appropriate to consider the risks to your business of a poor website and the damage that it can do. These risks are many and varied, but in each case, they either make it harder to attract new customers or, worse, can drive existing customers away. Coupled with this are the additional risks of trying to cut corners. Instead of using professional website designers like Slinky, you opt for a cheaper option, like a freelancer on Fiverr, to design your website. Whilst we are sure many of these freelancers try their best, they do not have the resources to plan, design, and build a fully functioning website for a business.
If you carefully consider the many elements that need to be created and optimised within the overall design of a website you will soon discover that there are dozens of them. These include the colours and the fonts, the layout, the creation of the content, ensuring all the coding functions correctly, making sure the website has security protocols in place, and the SEO, to name but a few. There are some elements of a website’s design that most people might take for granted and think that their importance is minimal to the success of that website. One such element is the images. These are often given little consideration and simply picked randomly for the mere reason that ‘a website should have images’. However, if you were to seek the advice of a professional web design agency, you will soon learn that images can play a significant and positive role within a website, and rather than seeing them as an afterthought, they should actually be given very careful consideration. Whilst images might not have the kudos of videos with regards to what content you have nor take the time to create that written blog posts might, nevertheless, it is important that due care and attention is given to them. By doing so, the images on your website can contribute with regards to enhancing the experience of visitors, help promote your brand, products, and services, enlighten those seeking information, boost your SEO, and give an otherwise dull website, some life. As welcome as those benefits might be, they will only be realised if you plan, configure, and optimise your images and there are several ways in which this can be achieved. Read on, and you will discover 7 tips on how you can ensure that the images used within your website design are effective and contribute positively to your website’s success.
There is often a battle that goes on in the mind of business owners when they need a website built for their local business. On one side, there is the pragmatic thoughts looking for a website that ranks highly and converts visitors to buyers in high numbers. On the flip side, there are often thoughts of grand designs and a website that is so stunningly beautiful that it becomes the talk of the town. If you approach a professional agency and ask them to build you a website, they are likely to advise the former than the latter, especially if they are experts in SEO too. They know that a website that is a work of art might be good to look at, but if it languishes on page 10 because its structure and SEO are poor, nobody will find it anyway. As a business owner, it is not necessary for you to become an expert in website design. However, there are huge advantages to knowing some key factors that can make a huge difference in a website’s performance. Armed with this knowledge, you can more easily discuss your objectives and ascertain whether the agency can create the website you require. Let’s start with one factor that hardly any business owners know regarding how it affects their website and its ranking. That factor is site speed, the term used for how quickly a website loads when someone clicks on it and thereafter, as they use it. We mention this first because site speed is especially important because it influences other factors affecting website rankings. A site that loads slowly will mean some visitors leave almost immediately, and that ‘bounce,’ as it is called, is noted by Google. High bounce rates mean a downgrading of rankings. A slow site will discourage visitors from hanging around, and the overall length of time anyone spends on your site during a visit is also a ranking factor.
