13 Benefits of Hiring a Professional Web Designer

This post was originally published on PixoLabo

Reasons for Hiring a Professional Web Designer

Does this sound familiar? You have a business website or online store. But your online presence might as well not exist. It’s not drawing enough traffic, and to be honest, you’re not crazy about its look and function.

It sounds like hiring a professional web designer is in your future.

Whether you need a website refresh or an entirely new website, a web designer can help you get the job done. Before you try to do it yourself, take a look at these 13 benefits of hiring a professional web designer.

A poorly designed website can have devasting consequences. Let’s take a look at just a few:

• 75% of consumers admit to making judgments on a company's credibility based on its website design.
• 57% of internet users say they won’t recommend a business with a poorly designed website on mobile.
• 38% of people will stop engaging with a website if the content or layout is unattractive.
• If given 15 minutes to consume content, two-thirds of people would instead read something beautifully designed than something plain.

What are the benefits of hiring a professional web designer or agency? Expertise.

Find out how web design professionals overcome challenges and create the online presence you need to meet your business objectives and your user expectations.

Key Benefits of Hiring a Professional Web Designer

1. A High-Quality Site

Getting a high-quality website is one of the biggest reasons to hire a professional web design agency.

Sure, there are plenty of free website design templates out there. But they're bare bones. You can't expect to create a top-of-the-line, unique website with one of these cookie-cutter tools.

Designing a business website takes both skill and planning. You must consider themes or frameworks, CSS, HTML, and JavaScript. All of this may sound like mumbo jumbo to you if you have no IT, web design, or programming background. But it is second nature to a professional web designer.

A professional web designer can create a site for you that is both dynamic and attractive. A professionally designed website will offer a much better user experience.

2. Better User Experience

Professional web designers know the cardinal rule: put the user first. The specifics of this rule are less complicated than you think. While some companies are preoccupied with embellishments or the so-called bells and whistles of web design, they neglect to focus on the information most relevant to your target audience.

Think about what your customers need to know: how to reach you, where you are located (if applicable), and what products or services you sell.

Another aspect that web design and digital marketing experts will focus on is your product page or pages. Suppose you are selling multiple products or have a product menu. In that case, it needs to be clear how to purchase a particular product or navigate the products you are selling.

If the customer cannot figure out the benefits of doing business with you, they are unlikely to engage with you. Instead, they will look for an easier option. That could be one of your competitors!

3. Striking the Right Balance

A page that is too cluttered will deter potential customers. Keep ads to a minimum and avoid using too many images, videos, and large blocks of text. On the opposite side of the spectrum, a website that is too simple can also be a problem.

Some minimalist webpages — especially homepages — show just a brief snippet of text or a single, plain image leading you onto the next page. While it may be eye-catching, it is not beneficial for your bottom line.

Any professional website's front page should make the product, service, and value of your particular business readily apparent. Research shows users process simple visuals and text faster and more effectively.

Let a professional web designer help you determine the difference between too cluttered, too barren, and simplicity at its best.

4. Online Strategy

Another reason to hire someone to build a website for you? A professional web designer can create for you a solid strategic plan for your site.

In other words, your designer will keep your business model and future organizational goals in mind while creating your site. The designer's objective is to establish a solid foundation for the site to thrive long term.

5. Mobile-First Design

An increasing number of consumers are using smartphones and iPads, not just desktop or laptop computers, to get online. Therefore, your business's website must be compatible with today's mobile technologies.

If your website is not mobile-first, your audience will leave your website. That means website visitors are not spending enough time on your site to convert them and make a sale.

Fortunately, a professional web designer can help you increase your website conversions and your online sales.

6. Attention to Details

The best websites look simple. What goes into them may be very complicated. For example, in a case study, a software company made one slight change to their website: they changed the font size from 10 to 13.

That alone increased conversion rates by 133% and decreased bounce rates by 10%. Professional web designers will know what minor changes will most benefit your website.

7. The Perfect Call to Action

According to Small Business Trends, nearly three-quarters — 70% — of webpages have no call to action. A direct call to action, which typically starts with words like "Buy," "Subscribe," or "Sign Up," invites users to take immediate action and establish a firm connection with your company.

And it works. According to AdRoll, a well-written call to action on Facebook increases click-through-rates by up to 285%.

70% of small business websites lack a Call-to-Action (CTA) on their homepage. Business2Community

Professional web designers understand the best placement for your call to action as well. Click-through-rates and conversion rates are affected by the positioning of your call-to-action.

Remember to keep the call-to-action text simple. One is enough. Having two, three, or more will only confuse users and lose their attention.

8. SEO

Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, isn't just a buzzword these days. It's an essential tool for any business owner who is trying to compete in 2021 and beyond.

Your new website needs to be optimized so that it appears in search results. Even the best-looking website on the World Wide Web is useless if potential customers cannot find it.

Search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo use web crawlers to crawl pages for content, indexation, and links. If you do not know what that means, the good news is a professional web designer does.

Simply put, a crawler will scan or skim your homepage. The web crawler is looking for text-based information first and foremost. Your front page needs clear, plain text explaining what you do.

An expert in design and SEO can increase your website's chances of appearing high in search engine page results. The closer you are to the number-one spot on the first page of search results, the more opportunities you have to attract and engage potential customers.

9. Competitive Advantage

By hiring a professional web designer versus trying to create your site yourself, you give yourself a competitive advantage in the form of a professional and properly functioning website. Professional web designers follow a process that allows them to create websites that meet your business objectives.

The reality is that many small business owners try to put together their sites to save money. However, the problem is that they don't have experience in this area, and it shows.

Your professionally created website will far exceed what your online competitors have. A professional website or online store will help you stay ahead of your competition and stand out from the digital noise.

A professional web designer can also create and build more advanced website features and functionality. This ability is well beyond the skills of most business owners. In other words, a professional web designer can help you to increase your revenue without you having to lift a finger to make this happen.

10. Dependable Design

Another reason to enlist the help of a professional website designer? In 2021 it is critical that you have a reliable, stable, and trusted online presence for your business. And that makes DIY web design a bad idea.

The risk you run in building your website yourself is that some things may go wrong. Maybe it will only amount to a missing image or misaligned text. But what if your site breaks? Will you know what to do?

Fixing issues with a website can be both time-consuming and costly. For instance, you could pay hundreds of dollars for emergency website help and lose valuable time while waiting for someone to fix your created problems.

You can avoid all of this by hiring a professional web designer to design your website and ensure that it is fully functional.

Managing a business is already stressful. Don't add to your stress by forcing yourself to maintain your website. Allow a professional designer to handle this aspect of your business so that you can focus on doing what you do best — running your business or product brand.

11. Fast Loading Website

One of the most annoying experiences a website user can have is navigating a slow website. In 2021, visitors expect a website to load in 3 seconds or less. Since 2018, page load speed is also an important Google ranking factor.

A slow-loading website will cost you potential site visitors and search visibility. These shortcomings will cost you countless potentially promising business opportunities.

Slow-loading websites cost retailers $2.6 billion in lost sales each year. InVision

Many sites, especially those using fee or cheap templates, are not built to function optimally. Most, if not all, contain bloated code and outdated design elements or functionality that drag down your site's performance.

But your website does not have to be one of them. A professional web designer will create a website that provides improved page load speed.

That is a critical step in building a trustworthy website and meeting your target audience's user expectations.

12. Time Savings

Perhaps one of the most valuable reasons to hire a professional web designer is that this will end up saving you time on a typical business day. And let’s face it: Time is money.

For instance, your designer can provide for you an online quoting system, a form for booking appointments, or a contact form that will eliminate the need to book appointments via telephone.

A more efficiently run business leads to more revenue and thus a healthier bottom line in the end.

13. Cohesive Online Presence

Finally, professional web designers make your site cohesive. Web design is not just about the way your website looks. Web design is about how it incorporates various digital marketing elements — including design, SEO, content, and social media — into a cohesive whole.

Focusing too heavily on one aspect can make your website appear disjointed and possibly impact your SEO rankings and page load speed.

Remember, you are not designing your business website or an e-commerce store for yourself. You are creating your online presence to attract, engage, and convert your target audience. Understanding that primary objective is one of the benefits of hiring a professional web designer.

Why Should You Hire a Professional Web Designer?

Thanks to the technological developments that are continuing to occur in the web design field, websites today aren't anything like those created even three years ago.

Considering that your website is such a crucial business marketing tool, it only makes sense to hire a professional web designer. A professional can ensure that your online presence performs well in the competitive digital world.

Web design is rarely straightforward. Eye-catching designs help. According to Brain Rules, information paired with images makes a lasting impression. Users are 65% more likely to remember information backed up with pictures for three days or more.

But web design is about much more than the appearance of your webpages! Talk to experts today about integrating all practical web design elements — from visuals, text, calls to action, and user interface to SEO and social media marketing.

What Should You Do Next?

The best way forward is to let a professional web designer or agency help you. They live and breathe web design. Professional web designers are always aware of the latest trends or when Google decides to change their search algorithms.

A professional web designer won’t design a site and let it just gather dust. Instead, they are focused on how your website can best meet your business objectives. And that is one of the key benefits of hiring a professional web designer. Why not find out for yourself?

If you need help with professional web design or have any questions regarding your business website or e-commerce store please feel free to email me, or message me on LinkedIn.

By Gregor Saita

Gregor is Co-Founder and CXO of PixoLabo, a multilingual virtual creative lab working with clients in North America, Europe, and SE Asia. With over 25 years of experience in web, UX, and information design, Gregor consults for startups in Asia and the US. He is also an adjunct professor of design and user experience, a creative technologist and consultant at EnLinx Partners, LLC, and a foreign language editor at the Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine. Gregor lives with his wife, an award-winning Japanese designer, and photographer, in Sendai, Japan. When he is not working, he enjoys writing, exploring, gardening, and sampling new street food. You can connect with Gregor on LinkedIn or Twitter.