Testing And Improving Web Design

The Moan

In the world of web design there are many web designers who, once they design something, have it set in stone. They don’t like it when it changes or deviates from the original design that they worked on. This is understandable when designers have poured a lot of effort/time to get a mixture of creativity, UX - UI patterns and branding on the design. The same with developers. They spend a long time making the solution and suddenly changes need to be made to the page They've been through the designs with the designer - so why is it changing?

So when someone says I want to test that verses this idea, they feel like it’s putting down their design skills and knowledge. This isn’t the case. This is normally another person seeing something from a different angle.

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Testing also is something a designer/developer should embrace as it’s an avenue for them to prove their understandings and reshape what they know with facts and figures. A designer/developer with the open minded approach of 'test it - because right or wrong, I’ll learn' is more valuable to a company than one who says 'I’m the expert and only my view matters'.

At Kraken, We are fortunate to work with a very open minded and talented designer (Hannah) and developer (Sam). Hannah works with Sam on ideas and concepts to help improve people’s site goals. This could be working on getting more sign ups or getting more people to the checkout. What we want is constant understanding of what it is we do, and to further that knowledge that makes us masters in our areas of expertise.

Testing a site and using the data from those tests will improve not only the website but also improve the designers and developers ideas of what works where. Adding lots of small ideas to improve the library of knowledge you bring to the table for each and every customer.

What To Take Away - TLDR

So from this read take away the ability to be flexible in thinking about solutions. What worked on one site may not work on another due to other factors - and embrace that sharpening of your tools and knowledge through testing.

Reasons Why Your Website Should Be Responsive

At Kraken, all of our sites are built to be responsive as default. And here’s why we believe it is so important…

Having a responsive website has never been so essential. Given the sheer amount of platforms that people have to navigate and search the internet, it’s essential for any business to ensure that their website is usable on mobile and tablet devices.

Responsive design allows the content on a webpage to adapt to the size of the device its being viewed on, without compromising on the detail or layout of the information.

Here’s 5 reasons why your website should be responsive:

1) MOBILE USAGE IS ROCKETING – When someone recommends a great company or service, what’s the first thing that most people do? Take out their smartphone and type into Google. With 55% of all web traffic now going through smartphones, you can almost guarantee that at least half of potential new customers will be viewing your website for the first time through their mobile or tablet device.

2) FIRST IMPRESSIONS ARE EVERYTHING – How often have you typed a search into Google using your smartphone, a number of selections come up and the first one you try is slow, or confusing or simply unresponsive. The average mobile user has a VERY short attention span and if your website doesn’t meet the fundamental criteria for their viewing needs, chances our that new customer will leave the site and move on to the next one. Don’t give your website users any excuse to leave by making sure that your website is making the best first impression possible.

3) BEING RESPONSIVE INCREASES SEO – When comes to the tricky world of SEO (Search Engine Optimisation), there are a multitude of things that will help keep your site fighting at the top of the relevant Google rankings. And one of the most important things that Google ranks a website on, is whether or not that site is responsive. Don’t lose out on vital SEO points simply because your site isn’t up to scratch.

4) SOCIAL MEDIA PULLS IN THE USERS – With over a one billion people using Facebook and more than 100 million using Instagram every day, Social Media is a vital way for your business to interact and develop relationships with potential customers. With the majority of those users accessing their various social media platforms through their smartphones and tablets, it can be an incredibly effective way to drive traffic back to your website. But if that website isn’t responsive, then those Social Media users certainly won’t be back.

5) BE READY FOR THE FUTURE – As technology advances year upon on upon year, so do the devices, laptops and smartphones that company’s like Apple and Samsung produce. We have no way of knowing what is around the corner, or how the next generation will be viewing content on the internet – but by having responsive website you can make sure that you are at least ready for whatever exciting new technology is around the corner.

These are but a few reason you need to think about having a responsive site and hopefully now you have a greater understanding that your site needs to be responsive!