Very often we hear from customers the same misconceptions about websites and the process of their development. In this article, our team will describe the most common ones and dispel them ruthlessly.
10 Common Misconceptions About Website Development
- 01
The Page Should Fit On One Screen
This myth has long been dispelled by analysts. Now the website structure that sales nest is landing pages, which are quite “long”, with a lot of “air” and with correctly placed accents. When we try to fit all the information into the first screen, we get an information mess, in which the main thing goes unnoticed.
Users have no problem, scrolling pages up and down, but the abundance of information on the page makes it really difficult to grasp.
However, the user's attention is much higher on the initial screens.
- 02
I want more beautiful images on the site
Unfortunately, very often customers need design for design's sake. When it comes to graphics many of them expect something sophisticated at best or something gaudy at worst. “We have paid money for it - so draw!” Having received the layout, the customer begins to examine the graphics in detail, instead of examing the site itself, its usability and content. It is sad. With a few exceptions, sites work best where the main focus is on content, not graphics.
Nothing should distract the user from the content, the best design is the one you don’t notice.
- 03
First make a website, and I'll be preparing content
Modern design requires a lot of emphasis on page content. It plays a decisive role for the user. Therefore, once you've come up with th idea of developing a site - start collecting good content for it immediately. Today, a good site is based not only on design and programming, but also on content. And exactly in this order: content, design, programming.
The more accessible and diverse the information on a product or service, the higher conversion. At the same time, the abundance of information does not mean “a lot of text”: people like watching, not reading.
- 04
I'm not ready to invest so much in planning
Many customers are very surprised when they see the cost of analytics and site planning: "But your competitors do not plan and make very beautiful sites, and it’s much cheaper." In this case, the client and the specialist do not have an understanding of the seriousness of this stage. It is sad.
To achieve success, it is necessary to conduct analytics, determine the target audience and user scenarios, collect content, design a prototype based on this, and only then you can draw and program.
- 05
I want you to do like this, like this and like this
Often, executives on the customer side begin to think this way: “he who pays the piper calls the tune, so do as I say.” Or even worse: the managers on the customer side draw up requirements and comments only in order to show vigorous activity. For someone, the goal is to show who is the boss, while for others, to curry favor with the person in charge. This, as you know, is also sad.
You are developing a site not for yourself, not for the boss. You are developing a site for your customers! So focus on their wishes, not yours.
- 06
We want 5 design options
Customers often want to choose from several design options. At the same time they want to start development from this very point. In most of these cases, the client receives a bunch of beautiful pictures that may never work but does not even understand this. As we said, design is far from the first stage. First, you need to plan the site properly.
It is not so easy to make several different design options in accordance with the finished prototype and the existing corporate identity.
We know an interesting case when 5 companies drew design based on one prototype and brand book. As a result, all layouts were almost identical to each otherand only professionals, not ordinary users, could see the difference.
If a site is fashionable, then it is much more efficient to make several options for creative concepts and “mood boards” rather than for design.
- 07
Why should I pay for testing?
Many customers believe that they should not pay for testing the project: "all errors are the the contractor's problem." Of course, at the testing stage, our errors and shortcomings are often identified - this is a completely normal development process for any software. Imagine that the developer will not plan time for testing: most errors will be caught on a “live” site, your users will see them.
Yes, of course, the contractor will fix all errors for free, but it will cost you the conversion, and, as a result, you will lose money (and much more than the cost of testing).
Good developers have a QA specialist who is responsible for quality control, and this specialist is usually a very strong and expensive combat unit, which certainly costs money.
- 08
It is necessary to ask the user this, this, and also this
This is a massive problem for most customers - everyone wants to ask the user as much as possible in order to know as much as possible about them. Of course, for CRM this is very good, but when users see large and complex forms, many will run away from your site. People like neither to spending a lot of time on this nor sharing their personal data.
For example, to place an order, it is enough to ask the user only for the phone number: in this case there will be a lot of management costs, but the conversion is much higher. You can pester a user with questions after he has become a client.
- 09
Internal pages are not as important as the main one
The main page, of course, is important, but in many cases users do not even see it. They get to a specific page of a product or service through search engines or via links. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to the internal pages,- to preparing content, designing and drawing.
Wishing to cut down the costs, customers are often unwilling to spend additional money on the thoughtful development of each internal page and only limit themselves to templates. And to be honest, that might be not such a good idea. You should not consider this as a cost, it is rather an investment that will definitely pay off.
- 10
Why do I need reviews on the site?
Now in almost all online sales niches there is quite a lot of competition, and the price difference is usually small. In such circumstances, customer reviews work best for you.
Mostly, users are interested in the quality of the product and service. And do not think to fake reviews - this is noticeable. It is better to spend energy on improving the quality of service.
We hope that these 10 misconceptions are useful for you and in the future will bring you more streamlined and successful work with the development team.
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