When it comes to building an effective website for your online business, there will be a strong temptation to make it as attractive as possible. Given all the new features and possibilities, it is certainly understandable that you want your website to really shine. However, as an effective digital marketing platform a “pretty” website is not necessarily an effective one.

There are several reasons for this, but the most important one is that your website is really part of the sales conversion and not the advertising part of your overall marketing strategy.

What Makes a Website Effective?

Essentially, an effective website is a combination of scripts, coding, apps, website forms and interactive features that make it a place where visitors can find what they need and purchase the products or services that you offer.

Easy Navigation: You need to make it as easy as possible for a visitor to go from one place to another on your website. Any confusion may cause a potential customer to simply go somewhere else instead of buying from you, so it is imperative that you make it simple for them to check out what your website has to offer.

Intuitive Design: Intuitive means that they don’t have to think about going from one place to another. Given that websites are so commonplace these days, customers appreciate a well designed, intuitive platform when they see it.

Easy Checkout: This is arguably the most important part of your digital marketing platform at least when it comes to sales. You want to make the checkout process as smooth and easy as possible because this is the time when most people become anxious about spending their money with an unknown company.

How Pretty Graphics Work Against your Website

While it may seem counterintuitive, the truth is that making your website pretty with plenty of graphics works against selling the products or services that you provide.

Slow Website Download: The longer it takes for your website to download, the lower your search rankings will be on search engines where most people find your site. You are better off minimizing the graphic displays along with downsizing images and photos to maximize download speed.

Distracting: Pretty graphics certainly draw attention away from the more important areas of your website. This can be a real minus when including them since they may confuse potential customers who are trying to find what you offer.

Amateur: Perhaps the worst aspect of adding graphics is that they can make your site appear unprofessional. Depending on your industry, unnecessary graphics can weigh down your website and make it look unsuitable to do business.

Overall, your website is a digital marketing platform designed to convert potential sales. This means offering a clean, professional website with very minimal graphics so that you do not confuse potential customers. The main goal once visitors arrive at your site is to sell them on the products or services that you offer, so avoiding pretty graphics can help you garner more success.