Websites · February 2024
Design the next step before the page
Decide what a qualified visitor should do, then build the hierarchy backwards from that action.
By Ali Bek · Published · Updated · 6 min read
Pages get designed as compositions and then a button is added at the end. Reversing that order produces a simpler page that performs better. A website design Ottawa project that starts with the desired action, rather than the layout, tends to finish faster and convert better once it launches.
Name the action first
One action per page for the visitor you actually want. Book, call, quote, buy. Write it down before any layout exists, because every later decision is either supporting it or competing with it. A digital marketing agency Canada wide will usually insist on this step before any design software is even opened.
Work backwards
What does someone need to believe to take that step, and in what order. Each section exists to remove one obstacle. Sections that remove nothing are decoration and can go. This approach keeps a content marketing strategy for the page focused rather than decorative.
Give the action room
Repeat it at natural decision points rather than hiding it once at the bottom. And keep secondary links away from it, so the moment of decision is not a menu. Good website design Ottawa practice treats the primary action as the single most important element on the page.
Test the page with a stranger
Ask someone unfamiliar with the business to look at the page for ten seconds and say what they think it wants them to do. If they are not sure, the hierarchy needs work. This small, cheap test catches more problems than another round of internal opinions ever will.