Your business website is one of the most important tools in attracting new clients and spreading your firm’s brand and reputation. This means you have an opportunity to make a great first impression before a potential client even contacts you.
However, this also means that if your website isn’t properly designed or is outdated, you could frighten off potential clients. Web users are impatient, so you need to make sure your site is both aesthetically pleasing and functions well.
If it’s time for a site upgrade or a new site altogether, it’s important to educate yourself before moving forward.
That said, let’s look at seven web design elements your site must have to ensure success.
1. Theme Consistency
The color scheme and layout of your website are important elements in the overall design. As an attorney, you need to consider the type of law you practice and choose an appropriate and inviting color pattern and logo design.
More importantly, you want this theme to remain consistent throughout the entire site. When your theme and layout is consistent, a visitor feels at ease while moving through the internal pages.
The best approach is to create a homepage that’s unique from the rest of the site and draws the user’s eye to important information like the firm name and what services you provide. The rest of the site should be a subtle version of the homepage, with each page maintaining a consistent look and feel.
2. Logical and Clear Navigation
When talking about web design elements with a professional developer, make sure they plan on incorporating smart navigation. It’s likely you practice a number of different types of law or many subdivisions of a single practice. Depending on the size of your firm, you may have a considerably large website.
It’s important the navigation structure by which a user will move through your site is logical, clear, and consistent. This means a visitor always knows where they are and can easily access any page with one click.
Incorporating the main navigational buttons into the header works great. If you have subsections of a page, consider using drop-down menus that provide a sleek and functional way to access every piece of content.
3. An About Us Page
Due to the intricacies of the legal system, a person seeking an attorney always needs to hire one that has a specific type of expertise. It’s not always easy unless you’re using a national database like USAttorneys insurance claim lawyers.
An About Us page is the best way to let visitors know who you are and what type of cases you handle. This is also a great place to inform visitors about your firm’s experience and background.
Don’t be afraid to interject some of your own personality here. This is also a great page for including some testimonials from previous clients. A good image of the entire firm will also work in perfect conjunction with the content.
Remember to always keep the About Us page as a prominent button in the site navigation.
4. Contact and Call to Action
This is one of the most important web design elements when trying to convert traffic into new clients. If a person has trouble contacting you, there’s a good chance they’ll move on to the next website.
You need to incorporate a dedicated “Contact Us” page into your site. A user should always be able to access this page from the primary navigation and even from the footer. On this page, make sure you include your physical address, hours, an embedded Google Map to your address, and an email contact form.
Aside from a contact page, your site should have a good call to action, nudging the visitor to contact you. Have your designer incorporate a call to action into the header so it’s in a fixed location throughout the site.
5. Quality Imagery
High-quality imagery attracts people’s eye and also helps establish the type of law you practice. The term “high-quality” is important here. Outdated or poor-quality imagery is a bad reflection of your business and online reputation.
You should consider having professional photographs taken of your staff and office. Adding these to the site’s design creates an instant feeling of familiarity in a visitor’s mind.
It’s also essential to provide good headshots of every attorney on their bio page. When a person needs an attorney, it’s likely they feel vulnerable and nervous. It helps if they can place a face to a name when looking for an attorney.
6. Responsive Design
This is an important one. Mobile has now surpassed desktop as the primary way people search the internet. When considering web design elements, responsive design is critical.
When your website is responsive, this means it can be accessed on all mobile devices. Not only can it be accessed, it will display and function properly. If your site doesn’t provide this experience, you’ll be losing out on a large number of visitors.
When a developer optimizes your site for mobile compatibility, all imagery will adjust to fit mobile screens and functional components like navigation and contact forms will work just as they do on a desktop.
7. An Effective Footer
A great way to convey important information and links is in the footer of your site. The best part of an effective footer is that it doesn’t compromise the overall design while remaining consistent throughout the site.
It’s important to repeat some, if not all, of your navigation in the footer. This allows users another point at which to access certain pages. However, if your site is large, only include the primary pages.
A footer is also a great place to add small logos of associations you’re connected to. These could include bar associations or the Better Business Bureau. Not only do these things establish credibility, linking to them will help your site’s search engine rankings.
Web Design Elements to Enhance Your Site
In order to compete online, your site must be up to par with other firms in your area.
If you feel your site could use an overhaul, consider the elements discussed above and find out what you’re missing. Then, talk to a professional designer and decide on how to enhance your site for optimal conversion.
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