If someone is looking at your website, then chances are your website is poorly designed.
Now you may be thinking that the goal of any website is to have people looking at it, but actually it isn't. For example I don't want to looking at my website, I want you to do what you're doing right now. I want you to read the content on my website.
Many business owners get carried away with the overall visual of their websites. They want flash banners, stunning images and an artistic layout. But why would anyone want that? All it's doing is distracting visitors from the content that is contained on the website.
Don't agree with me? That's fine, let me give you a couple of examples of successful websites and then you can judge for yourself.
You may have heard of a little website called eBay, if not you can get to it by clicking on www.ebay.com.au. Now one of the first things you will notice when you get to eBay are some of the products that are currently being sold on their site. You will also see the search bar where you can type in what you're looking for, or you can easily find categories of product types. The one thing you don't notice is the graphic design of their website. So why is it that one of the most widely known and successful online businesses has not taken the time to design a more spectacular looking site? Simply because they don't want you 'looking' at their website, they want you looking at items that you might be interested in buying, or listing products for sale. They don't care about the look of the site, they just want people using it and interacting with it.
Still not convinced? Well have you had a look at Google lately? I doubt you will find a less spectacular looking website.
Want more proof? Well how about one of the biggest online companies in the world Microsoft. Have a look at the Microsoft website and you will see a plain, minimalistic layout that in no way distracts you from the content that they want you to read, or the actions that they want you to take. And it's not just Microsoft, their competitors also share their point of view, just go to Apple's website (http://www.apple.com/) and you will see a perfect example of keeping the graphical elements out of the way of the viewer.
You might have also noticed that our site does not have a flash banner, or distracting images. Because I want you reading this content, not admiring the visual elements of our site.
So why is it then that so many business owners get so caught up in how their websites look?
Simply because they have an unhealthy emotional connection with their sites. Sure truly ugly websites, or those that look amateurish are to be avoided as these will also distract people, and for all the wrong reasons. The very best website designs are unnoticable. They are neither visually stunning, nor are they horrifically unattractive. They simply don't get noticed.
Now understanding that websites should not be too 'stunning', take a look at your own website. What do you see? What are visitors to your site looking at? Is your site simple and clean like Google, Microsoft or Apple, or is it beautiful and distracting? If it's the latter, then I suggest it's time you called us here at Azul, and let us help you design a website that will appeal to your customers, rather than you.
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