How to Evaluate a Website Design Without Being a Web Designer
If you want to know how to evaluate a website design, you don’t need to be a website designer. You don’t need a special program either. No programming knowledge. No master’s degree in fine art. A lot of it comes down to stepping back, looking at your website, and trying to use it the same way one of your customers would.
That can be tougher than it sounds.
As the business owner, you’ve probably looked at your website hundreds or thousands of times. You might have helped pick the colors, photos, wording, buttons, and everything else. You know where everything is.
Your customers don’t.
Start By Asking Other People What They Think
One of the problems when you try to evaluate a website for your own business is that you’re too close to it. In a way, it is your baby. Of course you think it looks good.
I know I’m not an unbiased person to ask if my son Theron is cute. I’m his dad. Of course I think he’s cute and adorable. When a lot of other people tell me the same thing, though, now I have some outside confirmation.
Your website can be the same way.
Ask employees, customers, friends, family, and even prospective customers what they think. Prospective customers can be especially helpful because they don’t know your business that well yet.
Don’t just ask, “Do you like our website?”
Ask if anything looks old or bland. Ask what catches their attention first. Ask if anything is confusing. Ask what they would change.
You might not agree with every answer, but if three or four people point out the same problem, pay attention to it.
Not sure how well your current website is really working? We can review the design, layout, messaging, mobile experience, and overall usability to help identify what is working well and where there may be opportunities to improve.
Is Your Website Easy to Use?
This might matter even more than whether someone thinks the website looks nice.
People will use a website that isn’t the best looking site they’ve ever seen. If they can’t figure out how to use it, though, they won’t stay around very long.
Can they quickly tell what your business does? Can they find your products or services? Can they find your phone number? Can they click a button to call or email you? Is it clear what you want them to do next?
If people keep telling you the website is hard to use, that’s a pretty clear sign something needs attention.
Give Someone Something to Find on Your Website
One of my favorite ways to check a website is very simple.
Find someone who doesn’t use the website regularly. Give them your phone, tablet, or computer and tell them to find something.
“Find our phone number.”
“Find out if we offer this service.”
“Find our location.”
“Figure out how to request a quote.”
Then don’t help them.
If you can see their screen, watch where they go. Watch their face too. Do they look confused? Are they clicking through three or four pages trying to find something that should be obvious?
If you find yourself wanting to say, “No, click that menu first,” you’ve learned something.
You know the website. They don’t.
Watch them struggle.
That struggle can show you exactly what needs to be easier.
Do the Colors and Fonts Still Fit Your Brand?
Your website shouldn’t look like it belongs to a different company.
Compare it to your current logo, business cards, signs, social media graphics, vehicle graphics, brochures, and other marketing pieces.
Does it still look like you?
Businesses change over time. Maybe you started using different colors. Maybe your logo changed. Maybe you use different fonts or patterns in your marketing now.
That doesn’t always mean you need a whole new website. Sometimes updating a few design pieces is enough. But if the rest of your business has moved ahead while the website is still stuck eight years back, it deserves some attention.
Look at the Photos. Do They Look Old?
Photos are great to have on a website. Really, they’re quite needed. But they can also make a website look old very quickly.
Look at the hairstyles, vehicles, equipment, clothing, technology, buildings, offices, and signs.
I used to wear a shirt and tie to the Full Scope Creative office every day. I don’t anymore. If you find an old photo of me sitting at my desk in a shirt and tie, you can make a pretty good guess that the photo isn’t recent.
I recently came across an even better example. A business had a photo on its website showing where it was located. In the photo was a bridge that had been torn down and rebuilt nearly 25 years ago.
Now the photo isn’t just old. It’s showing people outdated information about what to look for when finding the business.
If your photos look like they’re from another time, start by replacing them. You might be surprised by how much newer the website feels.
Does Anything Else on the Website Show Its Age?
Photos aren’t the only giveaway.
Look for employees who left years ago. The same goes for old board members. Look for services you stopped offering and products you don’t sell anymore.
There is a restaurant in town that used to have an appetizer my wife and I loved. They don’t sell it anymore, but it is still on their website. It breaks my heart every time I see it knowing I can’t order it.
Your customers might feel a little less emotional about an old service than I do about that appetizer, but the problem is the same. Your website is giving them bad information.
Old logos can do it too. So can old awards. If you’re still bragging about an award from 2005 like you won it last month, it might be time for an update.
Your website doesn’t have to follow every new design trend. It should, however, look like somebody is still taking care of it.
Does the Website Still Represent Your Business Today?
Your business might be very different from when the website was first designed.
You might offer new products or services. You may have a larger team or new building. Maybe you work in different cities now. You might even be trying to reach a different type of customer.
Your main service may have changed too.
Maybe one service made up 70% of your business when the website was built. Today it makes up 20%, but it still takes up most of the homepage.
A good evaluation of website design needs to look at the business you have today, not just whether you still like the colors.
Is It Obvious What Visitors Should Do Next?
You know what you want people to do on your website.
You want them to call. Request a quote. Schedule an appointment. Visit your store. Buy something. Read more about a service.
Does the visitor know that?
Look at your important pages and ask what someone should do after reading each one. Then look at the page and see if that next step is easy to find.
People shouldn’t reach the bottom and think, “Okay. Now what?”
Sometimes a Website Just Looks Tired
There might not be one giant problem.
The colors aren’t terrible. The photos aren’t terrible. The menu works. The content is there.
But the website just looks tired.
Sometimes you can look at a website and tell right away that it comes from another era of the internet. If your website no longer shows the same level of quality as your business, it may be time to start thinking about a redesign.
Not to make a cheap plug, but if you reached this point and realized your website is looking a little tired, a Premium Framework website from Full Scope Creative could be a great option.
Our Premium Framework websites are built for small businesses that need a professional, current website without the cost of starting with a fully custom design. We update the site around your brand, your services, your content, and what you need the website to do.
How Can You Evaluate Your Website Regularly?
Don’t wait ten years to ask these questions.
Once or twice a year, spend a little time looking over your website. Ask somebody to find a few things. Check the photos. Look at the branding. Read through your homepage and make sure it still describes the business you run today.
A website doesn’t need to be redesigned every year. It shouldn’t be forgotten for ten years either.
If most of what you looked at still works, great. You may only need a few updates. If you find several problems, or the whole site simply feels tired, it may be time to start talking about something new.
At Full Scope Creative, we evaluate websites regularly and we’d be happy to take a look at yours. We can talk through what still works, what could be improved, and whether updating your current site or building a new one makes the most sense.