Website Redesigning – The Process & Key Points to Consider
It’s observed that while some websites continue to create the same positive impact upon its visitors, some start appearing dull and out of sync. The latter is a problematic situation as it may lead to visitors losing interest. Also, a website appearing outdated will not attract visitors and thus will be ineffective. To prevent this from happening, you need to inject a new life into it again through redesigning. Website Redesign through expert UI/UX designers presents itself as a viable solution that helps business owners revitalize their sites and compete in today’s competitive world.
The Website Redesigning Process
A typical website redesigning process contains five main steps. These include:
#Analyze Your Site to Find the Purpose for Redesign
A site redesigned without a clear objective may turn out to be a futile effort. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to have a well-defined purpose in mind before starting the work. For this, there is a need to analyze the site to find the areas that need improvement. Such an analysis brings to the fore drawbacks and points out the features that may be missing.
As the analysis makes many insights, the decision to redesign may pertain to:
- Increase traffic and sales
- Make website responsive
- Improve load times
- Fix cross-browser compatibility issues
- Make the interface more user-friendly
- Add additional functions and features
#Understand the Users’ Needs
Understanding what users want is very important as it helps design the site to elicit their positive reaction. Also, for users that a site is being redesigned, it makes sense to carry out research to come across vital points regarding users’ expectations, likes and dislikes. For example, if users are getting distracted because various elements are placed too close, you should keep the other details constant.
#Plan Out the Structure of the Site
Post gathering the required information and clarifying what needs to be done, next comes preparing a layout. In this regard, Sitemap and Wireframe help a great deal. While sitemap helps finalize the site’s pages, the wireframe provides the much-needed space to place the content on the pages effectively.
#Facilitate Interaction
As a website is meant to interact with users, high importance should be given to interactive elements while redesigning a site. It must be assured that navigation is smooth, friendly, and in sync with the overall design. Greet the visitors with well-crafted forms which allow them to establish a connection with the site. There are also several other ways to facilitate interaction.
#Finally, Go Ahead with Redesigning Your Website
Keeping all the factors in mind and the purpose sought, you can start the redesigning process. Certain areas which require attention while carrying out the process include the use of appropriate colors, images, typography, and layout.
Points to Remember While Redesigning a Site
The following are the most important things to keep in mind when redesigning your website:
#Be Slow While Making Changes
It must be borne in mind that users take time to adjust to new things. If you present them with a new site, they may feel alienated. Therefore, it is a good practice to undertake redesigning at a slow pace initially that gives room to visitors to acknowledge and accept the new features.
#The Redesign Should Not Affect Search Ranking
When you’re redesigning your website, whether it’s a complete redesign or merely a minor design update, SEO is vital to keep your rankings intact. In other words, website redesigning should in no way adversely affect search engine ranking. Instead, you should bring in such features which further boost the ranking.
#Backup is Essential
To have a backup is crucial as it gives access to whatever information you may require from the old site. Also, if the new design is not meeting the desired expectations, the backup is a blessing as it provides the opportunity to restore the original design and content.
#Don’t Forget Your Site’s Goal
While redesigning a site, designers often tend to move away from the real goal and apply their creativity to make it highly attractive or visually appealing. Consequently, the site may gain in terms of appeal but lose in terms of visitors’ interest. Thus, it is imperative always to keep the goal of the site at the forefront.
#Ensure Faster Loading Speed
No matter how you redesign the site, make sure that its loading speed is fast. As users don’t like waiting for the site to load, they quickly click the back button as several sites are awaiting them. Therefore, maintaining loading speed is essential to avoid losing visitors. Get help from veteran front-end developers who are well-versed in optimizing the load speed of a website.
Conclusion:-
Redesigning a website is a great way to stay on pace with the changing times and give the users what they look forward to. However, it should always be done with a purpose and not just to show creativity. Analyze your site through web development experts to find some compelling reasons to redesign your website and follow the tips mentioned above to get your website redesigned seamlessly.