Are you having a difficult time retaining the attention of your website visitors? This is a common problem for many business owners. Building a nice-looking website is one thing, but getting visitors to stay on your site and perform the actions you want is another. If you check out the websites of your competitors, you may notice that they do not only look great, but they also offer optimal user experience. This is exactly what you want for your website as well. Anything less will give you zero chance of beating them.

Web design is an important yet often overlooked aspect of digital marketing. Even if you're skilled in search engine optimization and social media marketing, you may fall short of your expectations if your website doesn't provide visitors with the experience they deserve. It's also worth noting that online users consider the look and functionality of a site as important trust factors. You absolutely need a solid strategy for designing your website if you want to generate more traffic and sales.

To help you reformulate your approach, here are five tips that will steer you in the right direction:

1) Define and understand your target audience

Whether you're building a website from scratch or you're making amendments to your current design, you wouldn't want to proceed blindly. It's imperative to find your target audience in order to understand exactly what they're looking for. One of the best ways to get started is to figure out the online platforms where your prospective customers spend most of their time. You can also try looking at the traffic flow of your website and see how your visitors landed on your different web pages.

By taking this approach, you can come up with ideas on what design best suits the needs of your audience. Keep in mind that online users tend to have short attention spans. Your design must engage them right away or they'll hit the back button within a few seconds.

2) Simplicity beats complexity

It can prove tempting to add all the bells and whistles to your site, thinking that making it more complex will give you an edge over the competition. The opposite, however, can be true. A good rule of thumb is to avoid adding elements to your website that wouldn't add to its beauty and functionality. You will only slow things down, and online users absolutely hate slow loading pages.

This doesn't mean ignoring the aesthetics of your website. You'll benefit from a good-looking website for sure, but its functionality shouldn't be compromised. Minimalism has been a big trend over the past few years, and expect that it will remain relevant.

3) Employ responsive design

In case you didn't know, search engines such as Google provide extra ranking power to websites with responsive design. This aligns with their goal of providing the best user experience for their users. But even though you don't rely on search engine traffic, you'll greatly benefit from a mobile-friendly web design.

You have probably experienced using a non-optimised website on your smartphone or tablet. It requires zooming in and out just to read text or click buttons. These days, online users wouldn't have the patience to go through all this trouble just to make a purchase. You may not realise it right away, but a mobile-friendly website can have a positive impact on your conversion rates.

4) Present your content uniquely

It's a given to share high-quality content on your website, but this doesn't only entail a well-researched and informative blog post. Your competitors may already have the same information on their own websites, which means you need to find a way for potential customers to spend time on your site instead of others.

You can achieve this by presenting your content in a way nobody else does. For example, you can sum up your post in an infographic, an excellent way to capture the attention of visitors who prefer visual content. Other media formats to consider include podcasts, live streams, and ephemeral content. Don't feel afraid to experiment to see which works best. Excellent web design paired with engaging content make up the perfect recipe for increased user engagement and higher sales.

5) Consult a specialist

All this can prove overwhelming, especially if you don't have the technical know-how to make changes to your website. You may also lack the time to do all this as you keep busy with the daily operations of your business. Whatever group you belong to, it's a good idea to hire a web design specialist to help you out. A professional will not only guide you through the process, but he or she may also offer invaluable advice on how to further boost the effectiveness of your design. If possible, hire someone who has experience with your niche and understands your target market.