A Good Website Design Makes Sure Your Website Doesn't Function As If The Cat Was Using It As A Scratching Post
What Exactly Is "Website Design"?
Website Design is the sum of all the various elements used to create a website and how they relate and interact with each other. This is accomplished using the three main components of any website: 1) Structure - the display, look, and organization of the website itself, 2) Content - the actual information, images, videos, audio, etc. that is used throughout the website, and 3) Behavior - the websites interactivity which is controlled by things like JavaScripts, Flash, etc.
All of which is then balanced against the websites actual Usability - which is a combination of three additional elements: 1) Ease of Use - how easy it is for your visitors to navigate and use the website, 2) Accessibility - the ability for people using other technology to navigate your website (like the Blind using a Screen Reader for example), and 3) Compliance - how well the website follows the standards set by the The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
How Does Website Design Affect "Me"?
The better your website follows and uses proper Website Design, the easier it is for everyone who visits your website to use it. This means that they will be more likely to spend some time on your website to see what you have to offer - which in turn can help you make more sales, get new clients, gain more subscribers, or whatever your website has been created to do.
As an added bonus, proper Website Design will also help you to get better, long-term positioning on the Search Engine Results Page (SERPs). This will be because what your website offers is Relevant and Usable to your site's visitors. Even though this may seem contradictory at first, there is a reason you will get better results if the site is Relevant and Usable to your visitors.
The main reason being that this is actually what the Search Engines themselves are looking for in a website - content, etc. that's geared towards the people who will actually be using the website. Search Engines are in the business of providing "Relevant and Usable Information" to their own users. If that information is geared towards the Search Engines, then it can't be Relevant and/or Usable to the people seeking that information. That increases the likelihood that those same people will not be able to find what they are looking for and then may go elsewhere for the information they seek. All of which hurts the Search Engines themselves.
The good thing for you in this regard is that many people do actually gear their websites to the Search Engines and not their own visitors. That creates a huge opening for you. By giving the Search Engines what they are truly looking for it will allow you to be able to "out rank" all those other websites who aren't. Because of that, it will provide you an opportunity to get much better Search Results that can also be sustained for a much longer period of time.
So Then Why Don't People Use Proper Website Design Already?
The main reason for this is that it takes time, effort, and requires that you actually create content for your website that is Usable and Relevant to the end user. Most people just want to get people to come to their website and begin making money as quickly and cheaply as possible. This is also why there are many people who use Black Hat SEO techniques (unacceptable techniques that are banned by the Search Engines because they "trick" their way into higher Search Results). [Black Hat SEO - Learn More]
This may not seem like a big issue to many people - which does explain why so many people use them - but stop for a moment and look at your own experiences with the Search Engines. When you got results that didn't help you do whatever you were looking to do, how frustrating was it for you? Now look at what happened when you did find whatever you were looking for - how much better is it?
That is what using proper Website Design does for you - it helps you give the people who visit your website exactly what they are looking for - without the need to scam the Search Engines to get them to come there in the first place!
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