Balancing Design and Performance

Back in the days of dial-up internet, websites were designed to be functional, but offered little in the way of aesthetics as there would be too much information for the user to download. In today’s modern world of fibre-optic broadband, designing a website packed with eye-catching visuals is a given, but it’s still important that functionality is balanced with aesthetics. If you ask the best SEO company, they will tell you that what goes on behind the scenes is just as important as what occurs visually, but they should also provide Search Engine Optimisation services that will work with your web design, and not compromise it. But getting this balance of deisgn and performance isn’t always easy.

How Do You Balance Design & Performance?

Building a website that is appealing to an online audience is vital in today’s modern world, especially with the plethora of different websites available. But it’s also important that the website can be found when the relevant keywords are entered into a search engine. In the first instance, website owners and developers should look as to who their target audience is. For example, a website offering website design services should indeed contain a portfolio of what work has been carried out in the past, as this will be the call-to-action that helps a visitor decide whether to enlist the service of that provider or not. But to be found in the first place, a website needs to function correctly.

In this regard, website owners should consider what keywords will be used when they search for website design online. There is no generic term, so different people may enter different keywords to get to where they want to be. Website owners and developers should carry out research into what keywords are being used within search engines. Content should then be created that include these keywords, while ensuring the content makes sense to the reader.

Are There Any Other Factors To Consider?

There is no generic way to create a website. Granted, many may seem similar, but website owners should always have an idea of what they expect the website to achieve. If they are enlisting the services of a website designer or an SEO company (or in some instances, both) then they need to discuss what the most important function of the website. From here, a website can be created that not only appeals to your target audience, but also contains information that can be collected when search engines crawl the site.

It’s not just the content that’s relevant as to how well a website performs. Although search engines do pick up on keywords contained within the content, this content may not necessarily appear clearly within search engine results. SEO companies will generally advise that meta tags are also completed, which will allow search engines to present a clear title, along with a synopsis that tells a potential audience as to what the website or web page is about.

Semantic markup is another important strategy, as there are a number of methods that a website owner can employ, depending on his website niche. Ensuring the correct kind of semantic markup is in place will not only ensure you are found within search engine results, but it will give a clear picture of what your website is about.

Can a Website’s Speed Be Affected by the Design?

In short, yes it can. But many designers understand how a website works, so you don’t have the sacrifice the aesthetics of your website. A website will load much quicker as long as everything behind the scenes is optimised correctly. The optimising of images can be a huge factor as to how quickly a webpage loads. Those who are designing their own website may assume that scaling the images will be enough, but unfortunately the file size remains the same. It will be more beneficial to use an image editing program. Duplicate scripts can also take its toll on a website’s loading time, so eliminating these can improve your website speed overall.

Overall, there is no need to sacrifice one aspect of your website for another, as long as a website owners knows what they want their site to do. Remember that design companies and SEO companies work with website owners daily, so more often than not, they will be fully aware of what’s need to make a website both attractive and functional.