5 Must-Have Features for Your Custom Website
Monday, November 18th, 2024
When you choose to start working on your digital marketing, you’ll see several benefits, including increased brand awareness, more engagement, and even more sales. From custom coding to social media management, every business should have a strong online presence. Here are some unique features your website can have when you work with a professional digital company.
1. Consistent branding
This may not be a feature that comes to mind when you think of unique websites, but it is an essential component of standing out. Digital marketing companies that understand this can help their clients succeed online. They will ensure that your website’s design, color scheme, and overall aesthetic are consistent with your brand’s image. This consistency will help build trust with customers and make your business more recognizable.
If your company already has branding guidelines, a logo, and a standard look and feel, your website should reflect that. If you are new to your industry or area, consider starting from scratch or rebranding your business. Either way, a professional digital marketing company can help you create a cohesive and unique visual identity for your website.
2. Easy-to-use navigation
Another major feature of custom websites that sets them apart from template sites is their navigational menus. Visitors need to be able to find what they are looking for fast. Having menus that allow them to do this will present a good image of your business. The same can be said about the content on your web pages. All images, text, and video should be clutter-free and easy to look at.
3. Beautiful, fun design elements
A stunning website is essential across most industries. Each design element should be clean, guiding the visitor’s gaze smoothly across the page while capturing attention when needed. Incorporating playful, smaller features within an elegant design adds unique character to your site. These elements can be placed throughout the website but should be balanced to avoid distracting from key information. Here are just a few you can consider.
- Hover Effects: Subtle animations or changes in color when users hover over buttons or images can make interactions more engaging.
- Animated Icons: Small animated icons can draw attention to key features or functions, adding a playful aspect to the user experience.
- Micro-Interactions: These are small animations that provide feedback to users, such as a button changing shape when clicked or a notification appearing for successful form submissions.
4. Professional, unique features
Some websites cannot have dancing nachos or cute rocket ships, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be unique. By adding small elements like custom icons, your website can be eye-catching and keep a corporate feel. Consider adding a search feature for a page with testimonials and reviews, for example.
5. Custom videos
Videos are great for social media, advertising, and website use. Custom websites give you the option to put them virtually anywhere. People love videos and enjoy seeing creative ways to display them while browsing online.
It is best to have videos custom-made by professionals if they are going on your website, especially if they are on the homepage. This page is where most visitors start browsing, so you want to get their attention and wow them with your offerings. Here are a few other tips to keep in mind.
- Keep your videos short and to the point, no more than 2-3 minutes in length.
- Use high-quality footage and editing for a polished and professional look.
- Incorporate call-to-action buttons or links at the end of your video to encourage further engagement.
Tips for creating your custom website
After you have chosen to enhance or rebuild your website, there are still some steps to take. Besides discussing your digital marketing needs, you will need to remember the following.
- Your website will need to be responsive, which means it functions well on mobile devices. Some website elements on a desktop will slow loading times on a mobile device. If you don’t need something, consider not including it at all.
- The company you work with should be focused on SEO as well as functionality and aesthetics. The way pages are titled and the content that is on those pages can and should be optimized for search engines. Unique, helpful content is just as important as a custom design feature.
- With that in mind, your SEO value and load times shouldn’t suffer for the sake of having a cool feature on your website.
- Don’t leave out the more traditional aspects of a website either. Some features are known to work well for websites. For example, a strong header should include contact information and your logo, but shouldn’t be busy with fancy features. Video testimonials, blog content, contact pages, and photo galleries are all great to have on your site.
- Custom websites often look amazing, but sometimes they include features that aren’t favored by people or search engines. Music that plays automatically is a fast way to get people to leave your site. Be sure not to include anything invasive like this (or visual elements like giant popups) on your website.
Website design and development in Amarillo, Texas
If you are looking for web design and development for your new website, Andrews & Associates has you covered! Not only do we handle technical aspects of digital marketing and I.T., we also have a creative team ready to enhance your online presence. Give us a call at (806) 242-1088 to see how we can help you, or reach out to us via our support lines.