Top 10 Web Designers  & Web Design Company  blogs have been ranked based on Google Page rank,  Alexa traffic  rank and Technorati authority.  The three sources have been used to  score the Web Designers &  Web Design company blogs from 0 to 10, where 10 is the highest score. The highest aggregate total score for a web designers  blog, therefore, is 30.

Top 10 Web Designers & Web Design Company  Blogs considered: the above list considers Web Designers & Web Design Company blogs that have a high percentage of website design content. The  web design  content might range from latest web development technologies, website designers tips to general best practices and web design forums etc.

Google Pagerank: the actual Google Page Rank was used in the score.

Alexa Traffic Rank: Scores were calculated based on the Alexa Traffic  Rank (i.e., 150k-100k, 100k-50k, 50k and up) and each range was assigned a score  from 1 to 10.

Technorati Authority: Scores  were determined based on Technorati’s Authority rank (i.e., 1-100, 101-200,201-300,301-400,…) and each range was assigned a score  from 1 to 10.

Millions of prospective customers surf the web daily giving small business an ideal platform for promoting and selling  products and services online. Great website design and content are key elements that determine how successful your website is in converting prospects to real customers.

Here are ten website design tips to help you build your website and increase your chances of success online.

Great copy
First impression is the last impression! Use attractive copy while building your website. It must effectively convey to customers what they can expect from your website and excite them about your products and services.

Effective headline on each page
Assign an intriguing and unique headline to every web page design on your site. Headlines should clearly explain the content that follows on the web page, arouse interest and make visitors want to investigate further.

Attractive website design to sustain interest
Make your website design attractive and appealing to encourage visitors to explore your products and services. A sense of appeal , elegance and mystery sustains visitor interest and ensures repeat visits to your site. The more appealing your website is to visitors, the greater your chances of turning visitors into customers.  

Persuasive language
Content tone, style and chosen copy have a significant impact on visitor perceptions about your website. Positive, persuasive and convincing language can turn even the most skeptical visitors into loyal customers while esoteric, overly exaggerated or dumbed down language can greatly lower your chances of conversion.

Clear and concise subheadings
Subheadings, popularly known as subheads, allow your customers to browse through information quickly and find what they need. Ensure your subheads are clear and concise, facilitate easy scanning of web page content and follow logically from page headlines.

Easy readability
Website content must be easy to read and understand. Avoid the use of overly technical or flowery language and poor color combinations that prevent smooth reading of content. The content should follow a logical sequence on a web page and between web pages for maximum impact.

Compelling offer and discounts
Sales or discount offers on products and services must be very visible on your site. If you do not allow customers to easily find products and services on sale, they will turn their attention to other websites, even if you have the best offers in town.

Get the word of mouth publicity
A great website can convince your customers that your business is the best place to spend their money. Impressed and satisfied visitors can help you find many new customers through free word of mouth publicity and greatly increase your sales and website success.

Add unique content
Use customer logos,  images and testimonials to establish your credibility and quality of service to new visitors. Complements help to capture visitor attention and favorably incline them towards your website, products and services.

Add Shopping cart 
If you plan to sell products or services online, add an e-commerce shopping cart to your website so that consumers can buy your products and services online, without having to step into your retail store front.

Compare website design pricing
Compare website development pricing by reaching out to multiple web designers and shopping your business requirements.

Follows these website design tips to maximize the chances of online success, increase revenues and turn your website into a profitable sales channel. 

Every business that wants to grow and expand its customer base is either planning to make a great website or already has one. The world wide web is a powerful media that has zillions of people linking to it every day. The possibilities for your business are endless. Not only can you reach out to an unbelievably large segment of potential customers, you can do it cost-effectively.  Building a great website helps you establish an online presence, spread brand awareness, and build customer relationships.

The extensive outreach of the internet works both for and against your business. If you can reach more prospects, they too have access to hundreds of businesses similar to yours – all competing for attention. You have to give customers a reason to choose you. This is where good website design comes in.

Web site design is not just about a set of web pages. It’s about creating a website that keeps your customers coming. Professional and experienced web design companies can help you attain this challenging goal. In this article, we try to explain what makes a website design great, selecting a web design service and some tips. Topics included in this guide are:

1. Elements of good website design.
2. Selecting a website design service.
3. Tips on optimizing web design efforts.

Elements of a great website design

However much technology and technique may evolve, some basics never change. The most important principle in website design is “Honor your audience”. Your website may include latest design elements but won’t win you customers if it’s complicated, unorganized, irrelevant or slow. Remember, the internet is teeming with competing websites. Customers can move from one websie to another in seconds.

Here is a run down on what customers expect from a great website:

Relevant, original, and clear content

Content is king. Customers will stay on your website only if they find what they’re looking for quickly. Whatever be the tone of content ­­– entertaining or serious based on your business or preference – the goal is to inform the customer simply and convincingly that you have what they want. Many websites copy a catchy phrase or line that sounds impressive and use it on their website. Apart from being a possible copyright breach, your website also loses credibility. Keep the content relevant, straightforward, and convincing.

Readability

Text and background colors should be chosen to enhance readability. Dark text and light background is best (for example, black text on white background). Text should also be well spaced.

Updated information

Website content should be current. Outdated information tells customers that your website is not a reliable source of information. Websites should be updated regularly so that customers see something different every time they visit. Include a date somewhere in the page so customers know when the page was last updated.

Accuracy

The text on the website should be rechecked and edited for spelling and grammar. Mistakes in content indicate carelessness and that’s not the impression you want your customers to have. Check outgoing links regularly and correct or remove broken links.

Annotated links

If you include a link to another website, let customers know why you think it’s worth clicking on it. Links should be relevant to the content the customer is already browsing.

Less is More

Customers do not like too much scrolling down to read a page through. Keep it to a minimum. Long sentences too dilute the impact of a message. It’s too much information in one go and difficult to follow. Page lengths should be set so that the more important information is conveyed within a screen size of 640×480 pixels. Use short and succinct sentences. Address multiple topics in separate web pages.

Site Maps

Including a navigation menu that gives customers a glimpse of what a webpage offers. They can click on what interests them to know more. A site map also helps customers navigate the website quickly.

Organized content

Customers should find the information they are seeking quickly. This means content should be well-organized and easily navigable. Include pages in a hierarchy to minimize scrolling and display time. Maintain a balance. Reaching a page should not involve clicking through 10 links. Use text and graphics on buttons to help users. Keep a consistent look throughout the website.

Website Search

Help your customers further by including a search box on the website. The time savings will be appreciated.

Website Performance

Images and multimedia are good but they should not slow down the website’s performanceand load times. Customers could be accessing your website via a dial up or a broadband connection. Keep images and multimedia small and use them sparingly. Use JPEG images whenever possible. Minimize the color palettes of GIF graphics. Use the ALT tag to provide text alternatives to low-bandwidth users, blind users, and for speed.

A large table takes time to display. Break content into smaller tables for faster rendering. Customers will not wait around for a website to load when they have so many other choices.

Optimize the HTML code to reduce the file size and hence download time. Remove extraneous comments, spaces, and tags.

Compatability across all major web browsers

A customer could be using any browser. Your custom website design should look as your designer intended it to look on most of them. A comment such as “This website is best viewed in Internet Explorer 7″ on your homepage really means “This website looks bad in most browsers except IE 7″. Avoid this situation by sticking to standard HTML (currently HTML 5) and using CSS to format text. This makes the look uniform across the website, across most browsers, and speeds up display.

Privacy and Security

Online privacy is a major concern. Even if a website does not engage in financial transactions, there are other basic security issues that are surprisingly not addressed by even larger commercial companies. Protect customer data by maintaining necessary security standards – SSL, encryption, server security, especially for e-commerce website design.

Customer involvement

Websites should include snippets of relevant news – maybe a feature on latest website additions or a newsletter to keep customers in the loop. By involving customers, you make them feel valued.

Customization to user preferences

Websites that allow customers to filter content to suit their preferences give a more targeted experience. Content, advertisements, and look – all get tailored to the customer’s needs. CNET is an excellent example of such a website. The website analyzes user demographics to deliver information and promos that are relevant to them.

Interactivity

The Web 2.0 generation expects interactivity in all websites. Blogs, forums – all help your business as you get fresh content every day and valuable feedback that helps you serve customers better. Include polls, trivia, lucky winners and other fun features to attract more customers and charge higher for ad space.

Selecting a website designer

The choice of a web designer involves the weighing of many factors – rates not being the most important. Your website will grow as your business expands. Your website designer should be able to support your long-term and short-term business needs. Here are a few guidelines for selecting a web design firm:

Know what you want

Before you start calling website designers, give some thought to what you would like your customers to see on your website. Check out the websites of local businesses and competition. Think from the customer’s perspective. Does this feature add to the readability? Does this help customers navigate the website faster? Does the website look good on your screen? Make notes and discuss the points with your designer.

Analyse professional website designs in your industry

Use the search terms you would expect customers to use on search engines for your products or services. Try this on Google, Yahoo! and Bing – the most popular search engines. Analyze the competition’s website designs. Study the content architecture, search engine optimization (SEO), interactivity, and user-friendly elements of their website. This will give you ideas on what you would like on your website.

Develop content that is SEO friendly

Writing for the web is not the same as writing for a magazine. You should hire a web content writer to develop your website’s content. You can do it yourself if you have the needed skills. Many website design packages include writing skills in their package. Make sure they have an expert to do it – outsourced or in-house. Large web design companies usually have teams managing different tasks.

Skilled content writers create copy for web readers – who have a very short attention span. They apply their copywriting skills to create compelling content that attracts customers.

Work with the writer. Help her get a sense of your business and goals. Make sure she and you are on the same page on search terms and keywords that your customers use. SEO content is critical to the natural page ranking of your website.

Get references

The best way to get an honest review of a web designer’s work is to talk to its clients. Most web design companies include portfolios on their website. Contact the website owners and ask about the quality of work, adherence to timelines, customer service, responsiveness, rates, and bad experiences if any.

The other way around is to get a web designer’s contact details from a website you like. Usually, websites have a “Web design by XYZ” link at the bottom. Clicking on it will take you to the designer’s website or display an email address to contact the company. Or you can call the numbers on the website and ask for the designer’s contact details. This way, you also get to hear the website owner’s opinion of the designer’s services.

Include a blog for interactivity

Many small business website designs include a blog. You can publish articles related to your products or services. A content writer can develop articles for you on a regular basis. All articles should be thoroughly edited before publishing as sloppy mistakes throw a bad light on your business’ professionalism.

Blogs work three ways – customers feel involved and care for your business more, sharing knowledge enhances your credibility and reliability as a business, and frequent updation makes your website more favorable to search engines.

Gauge the level of customer service

A website needs constant maintenance. Many web designers offer long-term services and work with you to keep your website in top form. Find out if the web design service will:

1. make changes as and when requested?
2. respond to requests quickly?
3. train your personnel if you want to maintain the website yourself?
4. charge you for website crashes that occur due to no fault of yours? If yes, how will you be charged?

Survey the market

Web design rates vary. Conduct a market survey to know what designers charge for various services. Have an average in mind before you discuss rates with your chosen web designer.

Study the contract

Read the contract thoroughly. Look at the charges for the actual web design and for associated services. Discuss the fees with the website designer and agree only if you are convinced. Read the fine print. Make sure there are no hidden charges or ambiguous statements. Have your business lawyer review the agreement before signing it.

Tips on optimizing website design

Though web design services will do all that is needed to develop and optimize your website, you can help them by doing some groundwork.

Collect website images

Collect high quality JPEG images for the designer to use on the website. Click your own or search on the internet. If you give the job to the designer, she will search for stock photographs. This will take time and money (to purchase the rights to the stock images). By doing this homework yourself, you can save both.

Secure domain name and web hosting account

Majority of website companies will offer hosting and domain services. However, you are not obligated to take them on. If the rates, services and past records are good, go for it. Else, you can get a better deal by buying domain name and hosting services from a large third party company. You’ll find web designers charge three to four times the rates charged by independent web hosting companies.

Analyze the website performance

Learn some tools to automate website maintenance and assess your website’s performance. There is a lot of freeware and shareware on the internet that can get you started. Some functions that tools can help you with include:

1. Assessing website popularity by measuring traffic, engagement, where users came from and where they went, what they browsed on your website, conversions and more…
2. Checking for broken links found by search engine crawlers
3. Managing website content yourself by using a CMS tool

The Internet is an interactive, dynamic, and rapidly changing medium that your website should reflect. Well-organized, and unique content set in an attractive, interactive, and consistent format are some traits of great Web sites.

Whether you are a local or global business, big or small, you cannot survive without an attractive website design. Whether its a business website that is focused on creating awareness or an e-commerce website that sells products or services online, web design is critical to generating sales or business leads.

Professional Web Site Design does not entail just the appearance of a website. It also encompasses navigational ease, systematic organization of information, performance and search engine friendliness of the website.

Before selecting a web designer

Web designers cannot create a website that reflects your business objectives without your input. Before looking for a web designer, outline your business needs and expectations from the website.

1. Do you want to sell items or promote products?

You will need an e-commerce website with an online shopping cart and a credit card payment gateway in case you want to sell products online. Else, a website with an interactive blog is excellent for sharing information and getting feedback.

2. How much information do you need on the website?

Deciding on the content you want on the website will help you estimate the number of web pages — a primary cost contributor. Show the web designer any photographs or images you want on the website so she can align with your perspective.

3. Do you need additional web design services?

Many web designers offer web hosting with domain registration, copywriting,  search engine optimization and pay per click advertising. If you want these services, let the web designer know at the start to take advantage of web design packages, if any.

4. How interactive do you want your website to be?

You may want to offer customers access to contact numbers, 24×7 support, live chat or online enquiry forms depending on your business requirements.

5. Do you have any specific web design requirements in mind?

Many businesses have specific brand identities they want to promote on their website. It could be a color scheme, particular font styles, tone of text or anything else. Informing the web designer at the onset ensures she or he maintains the specifics throughout the website design.

6. Know your web design budget and timelines

Let the web designer know your deadline and budget at the start. You don’t want them compromising on quality by doing a hurried or shoddy job.

Selecting the right web designer

Professional web designers can develop the perfect website in minimal time. But, how do you select the right web design firm from the uncountable many in the market? These questions should lead you to the best web designer for your business:

1. How long has the website design firm been in business?
2. How many projects has the web designer completed successfully?
3. Can the web designer provide references from previous clients? Call them and enquire about the web designer’s timeliness, communication and quality of work.
4. Has the web design firm worked with businesses similar to yours?
5. Who will own the website design?
6. Can you review their portfolio?
7. Can you communicate with the company easily? Ask for names so you have someone to speak to directly.
8. Will the website design be compatible across all major browsers and screen resolutions?
9. Does the company offer other web design services – copywriting, internet marketing, etc.?

Describe your website design needs in detail, request web development quotes and  layout designs from at least 3 web designers. Compare web design services and costs. After finalizing your selection, formalize web design project timelines and payment schedules. Make payments in phases till the website design is delivered and meets your satisfaction.

Web site design templates are a popular choice amongst small businesses wanting to develop a website on tight budgets and short timelines. There is a wide range of web design templates available on the internet; developed around various themes and patterns. They include basic and advanced web design elements and are priced accordingly.  

However, web design templates have one major disadvantage – restricted flexibility. Custom web site design overcomes this problem and allows businesses to have websites that align perfectly with their goals and audience. Here are some reasons why custom web site design is a better choice than template driven web design:

Effective branding

Custom website design allows businesses to define their brand uniquely. While a polished web design template can spruce up the website of a small business, its plug-and-play structure does not allow smooth incorporation of brand logo designs and signatures. Stock images work well but the business misses out on showcasing the professionals responsible for its success. Custom web designers highlight your brand and ensure the website’s usability meets industry standards.

Improved customer service

A business that uses custom web site design can offer its customers better services. The structure, navigational ease, look and feel of the website is developed as per the customer’s sensitivities. A website that is technically complex and includes elements that customer’s find difficult to use is not doing the business any good. The best web designers take customer feedback into account and develop a website that increases the business’ productivity and profits.

Flexible content management

Businesses should have the ability to make changes in website content to leverage on opportunities without loss of time. Custom web designers provide templates that link to simple content management tools to make the task easier and faster. Businesses can publish bulletins, special offers and new content immediately. The look and feel of the website is not disturbed and the business enjoys full control of the content.

Custom web site design is more expensive than purchasing web design templates. However, your business website is equivalent to your home. The better it is, the higher will be its return on investment. Choose custom web designers for a website that is original, has high usability, and is the best fit for your organization.

Building a business website that delivers on the web promise is not as simple as many people think, it requires considerable planning, design and technical skills. A well designed website can turn into a profit center for your business, attracting customers from all over the world.

With so many options available, it is easy to cut corners to get a cheap website design. Below are a few tips to improve your website’s effectiveness,  save yourself critical time and avoid implementation nightmares.

Set clear goals for your business website design

When building a website, focus on both the short term and long term goals. To create an exceptional business website in the long run, it is important to focus on several short term goals and customer needs like modularity and simplicity in website design and navigation. These features will also simplify expansion in the future while ensuring customer retention, loyalty and satisfaction.

Do not forget the web design basics

Customer perceptions can make or break your website success. To build an effective business website, focus on your customers’ most pressing needs. Place your contact information, telephone number, email address, and physical address on your business website to ensure visitors can easily find and access them. Include images of your products for maximum impact. Customer testimonials and references can also help your busines sgain credibility with visitors.

Hire a professional web designer

Team up with a professional web designer or firm to build your website. Hiring the top web design companies will help you get creative ideas, access to latest web technologies and will give you the flexibility of hiring contractors without overhead costs.

Develop good website content

Develop your webite content in a way that captures customer attention and compels them to return to your website. Effective website content addresses your customers’ problems and addresses their pain points directlysuch that they can relate to it. Your message should be well thought out and clearly expressed. Avoid using industry jargon and overly technical terms unless you are building your website for a specific audience that can relate to it. Don’t clutter your web page design with information about a boat load of images or identical content

Hire copy writers that are english majors, advertising or journalism graduates for developing good website content. Keep it simple and refresh it regularly to ensure that each visit by your customer is meaningful and valuable when they return to your website. Nothing upsets customers more than slow website load times and irrelevant content, giving them a reason not to return to your website.

Don’t Forget To Implement SEO In Your Website Design

To stand out from the crowd with a successful website design, make sure you build seo into the original website plan itself. Search engines are the principal way of getting your website noticed. Improve your search engine rankings using search engine optimization through the use of optimized titles, meta tags, relevant keywords and link building.

The above suggestions will help you build a business website that will increase your revenues and profit streams.

Building a professional website is central to any successful business today. A website design has a direct impact on any business and its sales revenues. A professional website design can make customers overlook some shortcomings of any business, where as a poor web design can turn away customers at the entrance despite high quality products or services.

Use the following  planning exercise to get the most from your website design budget:

Preplanning for Website Design

Thoroughly plan your business website design to save valuable time and moneydownstream. Answer the following questions before making web design decisions such as number of web pages, logo design, features etc:

Questions to Ask before Hiring A Website Designer

1. Who is your target customer?
2. What marketing strategies will be undertaken to create awareness and attract potential customers to your website?
3. What type of content will keep the visitors engaged to bring them back to your website often?
4. How will your potential customers interact with your website?
5. What is the purpose of your website? For instance, is it meant for entertainment, education, marketing or sales?
6. Who will write and manage the website content?
7. How often will the website content be refreshed?
8. How will you measure success?

You must first answer these questionsbefore hiring a web designer so that you have a clear vision and direction for your website design project. Then, contact a few web designers to get an estimate for the website design project, based on the features and content that are important for your business.

Custom Web Design or HTML Templates 

When designing your website you can opt either for a custom web design templates or use HTML templates to build your website. HTML Templates offer the advantage of quick and inexpensive web design and are provided by many web hosting companies so that your business can get a web presence instantly. However, html templates allow limited flexibility and customization where you can make a few cosmetic changes such as colors, fonts etc.

But, if you need use your website to attract customers and drive sales you should opt for custom web design. These designs are developed from scratch and often need expertise of professional web designers. Find a web designer that can take your requirements and can embellish them with their website design talent. Regardless of your specifc web design requirements, your website should always be professional, attractive and easy to use. Back all your business claims with excellent web design, content and customer service.

Web Design Expertise vs. Technical Expertise

An ideal website combines beauty and appeal, with usefulness and technical expertise. The best website designers are capable of handling both these aspects equally well. Your website design must include relevant keywords and meta title and description tags to appear higher in search engine rankings. At the same time, add visually appealing features such as images and flash animations to keep your customers engaged and to ensure frequent repeat visits. These features, however, must always be relevant to your business.

These tips are valid for both in-house web development and hiring professional web design companies, and can greatly improve the overall effectiveness of your website, your business and its sales revenues.