What makes a successful website? Web development is often described as a combination of art and science. At the absolute minimum, your site needs to function effectively — meaning that links direct users to where they expect and it doesn’t take longer than a second or two to load a new page. On top of that, today’s digitally savvy crowd expects a web experience that is engaging and exciting. Your website needs to inspire potential customers and clients if you are to have any hope of standing out from the crowd.

With that in mind, the team at Newpath Web have put together a short article outlining the key steps involved in building a successful website. Our years of experience have taught us a thing or two about current industry trends and we pride ourselves on building innovative, functional, modern websites.

Pick a CMS

Your first step is to pick what CMS you wish to use. What is a CMS? Well, the term is an acronym for ‘content management system’. A CMS is a type of software that enables web developers and owners to build engaging websites without the need to code from scratch. Not only does this save a lot of time, it also means that your website will be secure and is easy to upgrade.

There are many, many different CMS options out there. If you are working with a professional development team, they will likely have their own preferences when it comes to the type of software they use. Briefly, the most popular options (and those recommended by Newpath Web) include:

• Drupal CMS
• WordPress CMS
• Kentico CMS

Each of these platforms have their own advantages. WordPress is the world’s most popular CMS and is a good all-round option. Whether you are wanting to build a blog or a social media platform, WordPress can deliver.

This is also true of Drupal, which is a powerful open-source CMS. If you are wanting to build a powerful website with flexibility, speak to a development team about Drupal CMS.

Finally, Kentico. Kentico is an excellent option for those building e-commerce websites as it offers many of the features required by digital marketers to attract customers, and track and convert sales.

Consider UX/UI design

UX and UI design and two important considerations that will affect the way in which your customers interact with your website.

The two terms are often confused, so let’s quickly break down what each means.

UX design refers to the overall experience that a user has when interacting with a product or application. This can include a website, app, or any other type of product — someone designing a coffee machine, for example, will also consider the UX design. UX design is all about purpose and functionality.

By contrast, UI design is primarily concerned with the aesthetic components of a website or product. UI designers will consider how their choice of colour, typography, and design influence potential customers.

UX and UI design can be the difference between clients engaging with your website or quickly moving on to your competitor’s page. With that in mind, it pays to invest in the services of a professional UX/UI designer, particularly at the early stages of your site development.

Implement an SEO strategy

SEO is the main tool at your disposal to help new customers find your website. A good SEO strategy involves a mix of on-page changes and off-page outreach that enables both Google’s bots and human users to develop a better understanding of what your business does.

On-page SEO involves making a range of changes to your site to improve user experience. This can include improving your site speed, upgrading your site architecture, implementing meta tags, title tags, and header tags, and optimising your content with keywords.

Off-page SEO, on the other hand, is an outreach strategy that involves sharing your content with other trustworthy and authoritative sites. It can also involve posting on social media and working with influencers.

Your website can be incredibly well designed from a visual perspective, but without an SEO strategy, users will struggle to even find it.

Maintain and upgrade

Finally, maintenance. The digital world is constantly evolving and your website will need to undergo upgrades so that you can continue to provide your users with a seamless experience.

Many professional web development companies will offer maintenance as part of an on-going contract. This should be a big factor when it comes time to decide which development company you are going to work with. There is nothing worse than paying for a fantastic website that is bogged down by bugs and on-going issues.

Building a successful website is not an easy task. Fortunately Newpath Web is here to help. Our team of experienced developers have worked with companies of all shapes and sizes to deliver innovative, engaging digital experiences. Whether you are wanting to investigate the benefits of using Drupal CMS or have a burning desire to build the world’s best e-commerce site with Kentico, reach out to Newpath Web today to see how we can assist.