The other thing to consider is that good website design will mean something different to different parts of the business. If you’re taking on a website project, you’ll probably have decision makers from the IT department, marketing, digital strategists and stakeholders.
Typical (not definitive) concerns for different departments:
· The IT manager – Governance, security (which can include restricting admin access to certain roles) and scalability. To them, good website design is all about the quality of the information architecture (IA) and best practice design principles.
· HR/Legal department – Compliance with accessibility legislation and data security. Their concerns are often similar to the IT manager’s. Making sure your website is secure and compliant with all relevant legislation in your sector is their top priority. This means making sure the way you use and share user information is regulated, content is in-line with company policies and your website is accessible to users of any ability.
· Traditional marketing manager – The visuals, features and branding. Traditional marketers, especially in less technology-savvy industries, can often get preoccupied with the look and feel of the website. Plus, they’ll be thinking about how to show off all their content.
· Digital marketing strategist – Dynamic and engaging content that’s purposeful and enhances customer experiences (CX). Digital marketers will be thinking about content and aesthetics that can be personalised and automated to target users in the right context (across channels and devices). They’ll have digitally-focused KPIs and goals around increasing engagement and conversion through the website. The SEO aspects of website design will also be important.
· Sales/Commercial manager – Analytics, CRM integration, forms and calls to action (CTAs). The aspects of your website that increase conversion (be it leads, product sales, engagement, advocacy) such as web forms and CTAs will be a main concern. Systems that can integrated, like analytics and your CRM, will make it quicker and easier for the Sales department to target customers and increase conversion.
· Stakeholders – To Stakeholders, the “brand” is often the logo and people. They’re concerned with the improving/maintaining the brand’s image and competitive advantage. Content has emotional value and features must be impressive. But all costs must be justified. They want to be able to see ROI on the website.
The benefits of good website design
Overall, a well-designed website will have a huge impact to your brand. Each department will benefit from good website design that supports internal and external business goals.
For IT:
· Cut costs on resources such as call centres, support staff and administration
· Better collaboration between internal business processes and departments
For Legal:
· Compliance with legislation
· Protection/prevention against legal risks (e.g. data corruption, poor accessibility)
For Marketing/Communications:
· Increased engagement with customers who’ll see your brand as more accessible
· Real time analytics data can be captured faster, more frequently and with less disruption to the customer, enabling you to make quicker decisions
For Digital marketing:
· Modernising your brand and inspiring a culture of innovation
· Ability to engage in context marketing and improve customer experiences
· Optimised mobile browsing and social integration for increased engagement
For Sales/Commercial:
· Increased conversion/sales from engaging CTAs, forms and better user experiences
· Improved sales process with fewer, more automated resources
For Stakeholders:
· Cut costs, reach business goals and prove ROI
· Improved brand perception from customers, increased loyalty and brand advocacy
How we use Sitecore to deliver good website design
For us, good website design starts with an in-depth ‘Pre-build’. In this phase, we work with you to understand:
• Your business and sector
• Your audience, who they are and what they want
• Your content and its purpose. What are the goals of your website?
• Your internal and external systems – what works and what needs improvement
• How your brand will work for your digital audience
All of which informs your website design. And because our team includes web designers, developers, digital marketers and optimisation specialists, we understand what good website design means to everyone in your business. Our approach involves everyone in your team, giving ownership to the right people.
Why choose Kagool?
We’re one of a select few Sitecore Platinum Partners Plus, we’ve won seven Sitecore Experience Awards over the past four years. And we were the only UK partner to win awards for two separate projects at the Sitecore Experience Awards 2016.
If you want to know more about how we use the Sitecore customer experience platform to power successful websites, let us give you a free Sitecore demo. If you’re an existing Sitecore user, talk to us about a Sitecore audit and find out how you can get more from Sitecore.
