Video animations, splash screens and music on websites may have been impressive some years ago when it was new. Now they’re just annoying. Most website designs not only miss the point of a small business practice website, but even get in the way of users. Your practice should use what works in web design, giving information to visitors in a way that is simple and direct, educating the visitor, encouraging appointments and making it easy to contact you. Wowing your visitors with design may be the goal for some types of business, but not yours.
What do your visitors want?
Your potential clients/patients land on your website to find out whether you can help them, how you’d do it and where you do it. Once they have this information they will make a decision whether to make an appointment with you or not.
Don’t reinvent the wheel
Certain layouts lend themselves well to private practice websites. These layouts are proven, clean, simple and easy to navigate.
The design themes we offer our clients at PracticePulse have been rigorously tested for best-practice, functionality and features.
There is no reason to spend time or extra money on a slick looking custom design, unless you are a large company with very specific design requirements. A website developer who has experience in your industry will have a working knowledge of layouts and designs that work best. Reusing an existing theme or layout is a great way to not only get a proven design but also save money.
You may have noticed the design themes we offer our clients all have common elements. Contact details, menus, logos and detailed content links all appear in roughly the same parts of the layout in almost every theme. This is because we are following a proven formula and you no longer need trial and error.
You may be afraid that your website will end up looking like other websites. But so what? It works well. Get your website up and get on with business; don’t let another month go by because you are stuck in the design phase. As long as it gives them what they need, your patients and prospects won’t care so much if you spent an extra $5,000 on design or not.
Your web developer can always customise and tweak a theme to give it your own flavour. Our themes can all be customised if you really want.
Website aesthetics are more important than ever
The age of visually spectacular websites for small business is over. The Internet is regaining focus on its original purpose – to inform, share and communicate. Users now place more importance on content and function. If you can communicate what it is you do as a private practice and engage using original content, you have the building blocks of a successful business.
However, there is even greater competition or attention. If your website is ugly or loads slowly, then you have already lost the battle. You don’t need a progressive design, but you don’t need to settle for ugly either. You want results.
Redesigns are easy
New web design fashions are coming out every year. Spending big bucks on a design only to have it go out of style a year later is a shame. Invest in a website (and web developers) that make it easy for you to change designs easily. This way, you save money and time.
PracticePulse offers new design themes regularly and makes it easy for you to change the entire look of your website without other costs.
Mobile is changing priorities
With more people now accessing the internet via smartphones and tablets than desktop computers, the importance of familiar features is greater. On a handheld device, there is no room for flashy graphics and fancy extras – and people don’t care. All they want is for you to make it easy for them to engage with you.