How to Build a Website As Part of a Brand’s Digital Marketing Strategy

Today, a website is no longer just a brand’s identity on the internet. It has transcended from that and become a key channel to meet its digital marketing goals. Thus, websites have evolved from being mere presences of brands to full-on marketing media online.

Global digital advertising spending was estimated at $549.51 billion in 2022. This figure is expected to rise to $870.85 billion within the next couple of years. Rest assured, a good portion of this spending will be focused on websites.

Now, building a website can get somewhat expensive, depending on its complexity. At the same time, website maintenance costs can range from $500 to $1,000 per year. So if you’re building a website as part of your brand’s digital marketing strategy, you need to proceed with a few things in mind. After all, you can’t keep updating the site as you go, at least not frequently.

So, how exactly should you build a website while ensuring that it plays a key role in your brand’s digital marketing strategy?

Start with Your Website’s Purpose

Before you dive into fonts and color schemes, pause for a second and ask yourself what your website is actually supposed to do.

Do you want to sell products directly? Collect leads? Book appointments? Maybe it’s a mix of things.

Whatever your goals are, let them guide the rest of the process. When you know the purpose of your site, you can build it with intention instead of just reacting to trends.

This is also the time to think about your audience.

Who are they? What are they looking for? What frustrates them about other websites? Is your audience young, middle-aged, or a bit older? What devices do they typically use to browse? Phones, tablets, or desktops? Do they prefer visuals, videos, or written explanations when learning about a product or service?

By understanding what matters to your audience, you can make smarter choices when it comes to content, layout, and navigation.

Balancing Aesthetics and Conversions

The best websites find a balance between looking good and actually getting people to do something. Good design should feel natural. It should guide the visitor’s eye where it needs to go without overwhelming them.

Take the case of hotel websites as an example. Why hotels? Because the need to balance aesthetics and conversions is nowhere more important than in hotel website design. After all, a hotel’s site needs to reflect the style and experience of the property while still converting casual visitors into actual paying guests.

Many hotel websites today lean heavily into aesthetics. These include full-screen videos, dreamy photos, and elegant fonts. But if that gorgeous homepage doesn’t clearly tell a visitor how to book a room or learn more about amenities, the opportunity is lost.

As HOTELGrowth puts it, a hotel website is designed to provide potential guests with comprehensive information about the property. It exists to talk about the hotel’s amenities and how to make a reservation.

The design should always reflect the hotel’s personality, yes, but also support its digital marketing efforts. After all, hotel digital marketing has some unique challenges. And the best hotel websites help in tackling those challenges. In doing so, they are able to turn visitors into guests.

The same goes for other types of businesses that use websites for digital marketing purposes. A lack of balance will drive potential customers away, fail to appeal to them in the first place, or both.

User Experience isn’t Optional

People are impatient online. If a page takes more than a few seconds to load, they’re probably not sticking around. That’s why performance and navigation are huge.

Your site should feel smooth and seamless from the moment someone lands on it. It should load quickly to prevent users from bouncing away, function flawlessly on mobile devices, and clearly guide visitors toward the next action.

A clutter-free, intuitive layout is essential. The website’s design should never overwhelm or confuse visitors. This includes everything from the site’s color scheme and layout to any advertisements you might be running. Visitors should always feel in control and find it easy to navigate, no matter where they are on your site.

Navigation should be intuitive, not clever. You don’t need fancy names for your about or contact pages. Just make things clear. And don’t underestimate the value of a good search bar or a visible call-to-action button. Those little details go a long way toward making your website more usable.

Your Website Doesn’t Live in a Bubble

Once your site is live, that’s not the end; it’s just the beginning. Your website should play nicely with everything else in your digital marketing strategy. That means syncing it with your social media accounts and making sure any paid ads point to the right landing pages.

Also, remember that your business grows, trends shift, and your customers’ needs evolve. So don’t treat your website like a static project. Revisit it regularly and update its content and campaigns. If necessary, update the design at times, too.

A good website is never really finished. It needs to grow with your business. That means you should never stop updating the website. Be it the design or its functions, your website should evolve and grow as your business does.

When brands fail to update their websites regularly, they’re mostly running a marketing campaign that’s years or even decades old. Would you enjoy watching an ad for years with no change whatsoever? No, right? Then why would a website work as a branding medium if it, too, hasn’t been updated in ages?

Building a website as part of your digital marketing strategy isn’t just about checking a box. It’s about creating something that helps your brand show up in the right way, in front of the right people.

If you can balance beauty with function and build a user experience that’s seamless, you’re already ahead of the game. And when it all comes together, your website becomes a tool that helps your brand grow, evolve, and connect.