In this blog, you’ll learn:
- The best small business website tips for 2023
- Why a website is important for small businesses
- How to design a small business website
As of 2021, 2.14 billion people shop online. That’s about 28% of the population, and it’ll only continue to grow. This staggering number indicates that you must have an online presence to be a successful small business owner.
Designing a great website also gives you the chance to demonstrate who you are and what you represent. You can place your company’s mission statement on the site so visitors can see what’s important to you.
So, how do you make a website that’s truly great for your small business? In this post, we’ll give you six small business website design tips you need for a great website in 2023.
1. Chat Boxes & an Increased AI Presence
Many fields have already felt the effects of AI on their businesses. Travel sites, hotels and boutiques all have some sort of chat box available on their sites to assist visitors. So, how will this change in 2023? The AI and chat boxes will become more sophisticated.
So, what do we mean when we see chat boxes? These features pop up when a user visits a website to answer any questions they have. The boxes will have an automated presence behind them that’s ready to help the user in any way. For example, a chat box might appear and offer immediate assistance to the user. These features can deal with customer service issues, returns or answer general questions.
What will change about them in 2023, you ask? Machine learning algorithms will become more popular, making chat boxes and AI more efficient. For example, these algorithms will continue to adapt to voice controls so that a person’s exact query can be researched. Programmers will continue to develop them so that less human intervention is necessary. Hopefully, customers won’t have to wait for hours on the phone to get help. Consider speaking to a web developer to add one of these smart chat boxes to your website today.
2. More Intelligent Websites
Another small business website tip is to make them smart. You’re probably thinking, “Huh? How do I do that?” The short answer is personalization! Try your hardest to make every customer feel valued when they visit your site. There are several ways to do this! For starters, you can add a blog page to your site that answers general questions that a lot of people have.
Let’s say you own a painting company. Develop a content strategy that consists of blogs lots of people want the answer to. For example, “how to effectively paint a wall on your own” or “the most popular wall colors of 2023” are likely topics many users want to know more about.
If you’re looking for more state-of-the-art ways to personalize your website, consult a developer. While most web developers aren’t quite there yet, more of them will be determined to personalize as much about the UX as they can next year. For example, you might be able to make it so that a person receives a push notification as they walk past your shop or business. Here lies an opportunity for you to present special offers or links to potential customers. That’s some high-tech stuff!
3. User-Centered Design
People will no longer settle for the bare minimum. Back in the day, website designers could plop a few images on a website and call it a day—not anymore! People want to build a connection with every brand they interact with. Their website should reflect what the company stands for and believes.
You can achieve this goal by using custom illustrations that represent what you value as a company. Additionally, consider putting photos of the team or projects on your site so users can gain insight into who you are. Users are more likely to interact with a business that has tried to build a connection with them and appreciates their time attention, and potentially money. Bonus Tip: Add team bios to your site so people can learn more about the team and who’s behind the scenes. It’s always good to match a face with a brand!
4. Demonstrate Inclusivity
Users are more likely to engage with a brand that represents who they are. For this reason, inclusive elements like the ability to use different languages, alt text and content that represents different races, genders and ages will become more prominent in 2023. While it’s important not to go over the top, you should display some diversity and accessible features on your site next year to show the world that everyone is welcome in your eyes.
5. Embrace White Space
We all look at screens every day! One small business website design tip for 2023 is to give those eyes a break! Now, that doesn’t mean your website should be completely stark with text only. Instead, you can utilize macro and micro white space to your advantage and consequently make your page more appealing to users.
Macro white space is the white space between images or chunks of text. Micro white space is the white space between words and sentences. Use both practices intentionally, and remember, white space doesn’t have to be white! You can choose any palette that won’t hurt people’s eyes when they see it. Minimalism will be huge in 2023. So, try your best to design something that’s not overwhelming, but still welcoming.
6. The Rise of Micro-Animations
Excessive website animations will slow down your bandwidth. And, if you can believe it, recent studies show that it only takes users 7 seconds to form an opinion of your website. So, if it takes forever to load because of a lengthy animation, there’s a chance the bounce rate will increase.
Micro-animations, however, can leave a lasting impression on users. What’s a micro-animation? It’s a quick-moving feature you can place on your website. For example, if you own a clothing boutique, a micro-animation would be when the user scrolls their mouse over a picture of a dress, and the picture moves to show the dress from several angles. Pretty cool, right? Another example would be someone who visits your site and only sees a blank page. After about half a second, all the features slide in on the screen. The slight and short movement is something a developer can create that’ll certainly make an impression. You can bet you’ll see more of this next year!
7. Work with a Digital Marketing Agency
Another stellar website design tip for small businesses is to hire a team of professionals who know what they’re doing. There are certain things you can do to ensure you hire the right digital marketing agency. You should:
- Weed through multiple options
- Ask plenty of questions during meetings
- Find one that aligns with your company’s goals
- Pinpoint if they’ll help in other areas like social media
The more research you do, the better! You want to find a business that’s on top of the trend and looking towards the future—not one that’s stuck in the past.
For this partnership to work, you must be as open as possible with the digital marketing agency you choose. Let them get a feel for what your company stands for and what the goals are for the site. The more information you give them, the more your website will reflect your small business!
Those are just a few small business web design tips for 2023. It’s best to start implementing these practices now, so your site has a cutting-edge appeal other sites don’t.
Need a Digital Marketing Partner Heading into 2023?
It’s hard to believe 2022 is almost over. As a small business owner, you should always be looking toward the future. Keep these best web design practices in 2023 while the calendar continues to move. Being on the forefront of change is what will give you an edge over the competition.
Frontier Marketing is always looking for what’s next in the industry and how these shifts can help our clients. Call us at (847) 254-0837 if you’re ready to take your business to the next level and increase your presence online!