With a smart design, your mission of converting your customer from a viewer to a buyer will continue even when you are not actively promoting your business

 

Do you want to grow your business and increase your conversion rate? Well, there’s good news: you can achieve your goal using the tools you already have in place.

Just pay a little more attention to design.

Regardless of whether you have a virtual shop or a brick and mortar store, smart design is vital for conversion. Each time that you make a connection with a potential customer is a chance to market yourself and influence conversion. And whatever the area is be it a business card, website, or ad design, it plays a huge part in whether your company is remembered, or even paid attention to in the first place.

Image: Logo Design

Good design grabs attention with colour

Do you know how long it takes for someone to form an opinion on a person or a piece of design?

It might not be as long as you thought. Studies suggest that it takes only one-tenth of a second to make a snap judgement about a person, and only 0.05 seconds for a viewer to decide whether to engage further with a webpage or a piece of design. That can put quite a strain on your design!

A good designer keeps that window in mind when putting together a piece of design. Whether it’s a storefront sign or a virtual advertising campaign, the design should dress to impress. Colour choices play a huge part in getting attention.

Also Read:Office 2.0: designing data-driven workspaces

Marketing blog Business 2 Community lists some of the colours that are most likely to convert customers and boost sales. Some of these colours are powerful reds, trustworthy blues, and friendly, warm yellows. Though the niche and the market research plays a big part in what colours eventually get added to your palette. Using colours that attract the eye will help your company get the attention necessary to convert.

Good design engages and sustains interest

A big part of the design is the content. Not just the look of the piece of design, not just the bones of the font and colour choices, but what the piece is actually saying. Depending on what piece of design we are talking about, it will have different content that it should communicate.

Logo design, for instance, is about imparting the name and/or the feel of a company to the audience. The logo represents the company and can play a big part in whether or not the viewer’s interest is retained long enough to move to the next step.

Marketing materials usually have more space and can communicate more than just the necessary information. But all the space in the world doesn’t matter if your presentation is uninteresting.

 

Image: Great Deals Media and Marketing Catalyst

So a smart designer won’t only use the common calls to action, but will rephrase the content in unique and compelling ways. CTAs won’t just be used at the end of the text but will be used throughout, including in-text and as buttons and banners elsewhere.

 

Good design funnels the client further on the buyer’s journey

From initial glance to sustained interest, good graphic design can help the consumer to keep taking steps on the buyer’s journey.

Image: Logo Design

Having received attention, the graphic design then continues to funnel the viewer towards the ultimate goal of making a sale.

It does this by continuity — maintaining the look and feel of the initial design, so the viewer doesn’t wonder where they suddenly ended up. 

But it also can require some new, surprising elements: new colours and shapes to direct attention to CTAs and other content that spur the viewer to take the next step.

Also Read: Design thinking: A superpower for the challenges of modern businesses

Good design uses the lure of the new

Addressing psychological triggers that encourage a viewer to become a consumer, marketing blogger Neil Patel mentions novelty as one of the 15 most significant tools in marketing. “Novelty makes our brains feel like there is a possibility for reward waiting for us just around the corner,” he says. “That potential for pleasure motivates us to seek it out.”

So how does that translate to design?

Strategic design and marketing could include releasing or announcing your products and services little by little, rather than all at once.

It could also just mean re-branding or re-packaging of products and services that you have also offered. Adding designations that suggest that this product or service is something never seen before. “Now available!” or “New feature!” banners, for instance) can be a way to push your viewer towards taking advantage of what you have to offer. 

If your company is looking at redesigning their website, including these features in multiple places or as pop-ups throughout the site can maximise the exposure of these design choices.

If it’s a brand re-design, paying attention to your market research is vital.

 

Good design creates memories that stick

One thing you want as a small business owner is to be memorable. This is especially so if you’re fighting the competition, and if you want your business to grow — which, let’s face it, who doesn’t?

Some aspects of design lend themselves to memorability. Business cards, as an example, are easy to carry with you and hand out. So your logo and the design of your card don’t necessarily need to leave as much of a mark with your client — they can speak for themselves.

Also Read: Culture is about how you design the practical things

But that isn’t the case with all aspects of design.

When it comes to great ads, logos, websites, physical space, and marketing campaigns, good design can load your bases.

Keeping in mind the basics of good, attractive, effective design can give you an edge not only while the customer is viewing your design, but afterwards. This is especially true if your message is unique, clear, concise, and kept simple.

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Image Credit: Aleks Dorohovich

 

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