• Blog
• Get Started
• Portfolio
• About AHFX

Basic Design Principles for Persuasive Websites

Increasing Conversions

Posted by Adam Hayes

Getting more conversions through your website can be a daunting task, but Call to Action has some pointers to help make it easier on you.

• Avoid inconsistency - keep a distinct look and feel throughout the website. A splash page may be what your company wants, but try to avoid them; they are more of a hindrance to conversion. Also, be careful about having a checkout process that is drastically different than the rest of your website.
• Use contrast - users' eyes are drawn to things that are different—things that stand out from the rest of the page. It is a great idea to design your point of action so that it is different, so it has contrast against the rest of the design. This can be achieved through color, size, shape, and much more.
• Know where people look - users generally scan web pages the same way. If you know how they will scan your page and where they will look first, you can place important things right in their way. Persuasive copy, when placed in the first scanning areas, draws the user on to more of your website.
• Fluid or fixed - users can use many different browsers and have varying resolutions on their screens. A fixed width website design can have a problem if a screen is too small for the website and thus requires scrolling. It also may not look as good if the screen is much larger so it looks too tiny. Of course, fluid designs can have problems as well. Extra-wide or thinner browser windows can squish the content together or stretch it too far to be readable anymore. Users have complete control over this one, so make sure you take it into account.
• User manipulation - while you have control over much of your website and how it is presented, users can easily change how they see it. They have control over screen resolution, text size, images, colors, and much more. CSS allows you to show your suggestions on how it should look, but it can be changed easily. Just remember, you aren't always in control.

"How your website looks influences what your visitors perceive." Try and put all of these together to create a visually clear, appealing, and persuasive website for your visitors.