Recipe for the Ideal Website

Every website has its purpose. And, whether that’s to sell a product or enhance a brand, it needs to have the right mix of components to create the ideal website. These ingredients, when combined, create a perfectly blended website. It’s much like baking a cake. If you forget the baking soda, your cake won’t rise. And nobody likes a flat cake.

So, what does it take to create those individual web pages to reach and engage your target audience? It comes down to five main ingredients that, when measured, blended and assembled just right, create an ideal website.

Ingredient #1: Engaging Design

Design of the user interface is the prime opportunity to grab the viewer’s attention. And you only have an instant to do so. On average, most people leave a web page in less than a second. Engaging design, especially above the fold, needs to capture their attention. Remember, in this one window, in that one second, the web page needs to interest users in your business, product or purpose and entice them to continue scrolling.

Ingredient #2: Meaningful Messaging

Because a visitor’s time is limited, your message needs to be front and center on the page. It needs to get to the point quickly and clearly. This is your chance to speak to visitors about their problem and get them to care about your business. Once they know you understand their pain points, you’ll have their attention. An effective way to do this is in the hero section. Your message can be within a prominent image, slider or illustration that attracts them, then encourages them to read more, scroll or click through.

Ingredient #3: Ideal Websites with a Purpose

Every page should have a purpose and the content to back it up. If not, think about opportunities to consolidate and combine with other content on your site. The average visitor will only view two to three pages on your site before leaving. So, you want robust and engaging content to make each click count.

Ingredient #4: Call to Action

Now that viewers have engaged on the website, don’t leave them hanging. Each page should have a call to action — even if it’s simply a link to your contact page for more information. An ideal website gives readers options when they reach the bottom. A call to action will help guide their journey to your desired action.

Ingredient #5: Technical Capability

The technical side of your web page is much like the oven used to bake your cake. You don’t need to know how the oven works. You just know that if it doesn’t, there will be problems. It’s the web developer’s job to ensure functionality. He or she makes sure that each web page is optimized for things such as W3C standards and page load speed. Optimization is especially important with a mobile site, now that visits are almost equally split between desktop and mobile devices.

These five ingredients make up the basic recipe for the ideal website. From there, extra spice and zest can be added to create a unique flavor that will make your organization stand out.