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How to Improve Website User Experience & Keep People on Your Site for Longer

In a world driven by technology, your website has the power to grow your business above and beyond the competition. Unfortunately, you can’t just “set it and forget it.” You DO need to regularly adjust your online presence to survive the ever-changing climate of the online world.  But don’t fret—keeping up isn’t as hard as it may seem. Learning how to improve website user experience is a worthwhile investment. 

Signs You Should Start Thinking About How to Improve Website User Experience

You may be saying to yourself, “My website is perfectly adequate! Clients manage to find us… what more can I ask for?” The answer is: much more

Any rise in competition or change in client demand can slow the flow of traffic to your business at any time. Plus, you want your website to perform optimally—not just adequately. It’s okay (and necessary to the health of your business) to want more.

Here are some evident signs that you should start thinking about how to improve your website user experience: 

  • Your bounce rate is low or decreasing
  • Website users are forced to email or call for answers that are hard to find online
  • Your funnel data is throwing up red flags

Related: 10 Reasons Why Your Website Bounce Rates Are High

It helps to think about your business website as the first “teammate” your clients come in contact with. You can’t redo that first impression! It’s essential you make the most of their online experience in order to build (and keep) their trust.

How to Improve Website User Experience in 5 Easy Steps

“Smooth” and “user-friendly” are the ultimate business-site goals. You want your website to engage your clients and get them where they need to go, without any trouble. Learn how to improve website user experience with these simple strategies:

Use Interactive Content

Let’s face it, well-written and organized verbiage can only take you so far! Whether your clients find your website via organic search or a catchy advertisement, odds are they don’t want to read a novel about your products and services. They want an experience that’s dynamic and informative.

Interactive content like videos, infographics, or polls, go a long way to boost visitor engagement and overall satisfaction. It makes your visitors feel like part of a conversation, which keeps them present for longer and encourages them to come back.

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Set Up Internal Links

Put yourself in your client’s shoes. What questions about your products or services will snowball as they’re reading through your content?

For example, as they’re reading about your social media management package, they might have some questions about SEO. And that could lead to questions about digital imagery and a content plan at large.

Use internal linking to answer their questions and keep them moving throughout your website. The more a visitor clicks, the longer they stay on your website, and the more likely they are to realize… they need your services or products.

Related: 7 Content Writing Tips Every Online Business Owner Should Know & Use 

Create a Blog Sidebar

If your blog sidebar is underutilized or completely overloaded, you’re not alone. It’s common for sidebars to be left by the wayside in favor of your main blog uploads.

Here’s the thing: What’s become background content to you (as a business owner) plays a key role in your client’s engagement. If you want to learn how to improve website user experience, your sidebar is a great place to begin.

Make good use of your blog sidebar to promote other types of content, lead magnets, and/or offerings that your visitors might want to learn more about. And avoid fluff, like tags or a never-ending content reel.

Sport a Well-structured Navigation Menu

Be thoughtful with your navigation menu so your visitors can easily access the other pages on your site. As the hub of an established business, your website’s navigation menu should be clearly organized with obvious titles and subtitles. 

It’s like this: You never want your visitors to merely stumble upon the information they need on your site. Clear navigation helps them find everything that might be of interest to them so they can take their “next steps” to become a paying client.

You could even solicit the help of a friend or family member to test the effectiveness of your navigation and weed out any issues.

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Track Your Data: Watch for Improvements!

The ultimate way to figure out how to improve website user experience is to keep a close eye on your data. Of course it’s helpful to know common areas of weakness, but only your business data can shed light on your unique website issues.

If you haven’t taken advantage of the website data available for you in Google Analytics, now is the time to start. Check out Measure & Maximize. 

Understand how to improve website user experience by considering the wants and needs of your clients. A tidy, accessible website is the exact first impression they’re hoping for!