Large sized images, flashy GIFs and staying on top of the trends is what our websites are comprised of these days. Sometimes we are so engrossed in making the design outstandingly beautiful that it would have an eyes-popped and jaw-dropped impact, that we forget to incorporate it with the basics.

Those basics make the design look promising and do well in the long-run. After all, we don’t just want the audience to sit there and admire the beauty of the website. We want more out of them, we want to generate leads and eventually convert those leads – that is the end-result we all are looking for.

But that doesn’t mean that you ignore the intricacy and beauty of design completely, no way. It only means that you accentuate the beauty with the right functionality for a greater impact. It would not only make your design stand out but will also fulfill the purpose of your website: conversions.

Be it an eCommerce store, a boutique or a café, enticing the user and giving them the right direction to follow are important factors for converting them from users to customers. This requires website design and development with greater efficiency right from the beginning, instead of optimizing it at a later stage.

So how would you plan to let your website do the magic? Here are four things you can do in the development stage to make it more effective.

1.       Study your visitors

Here’s a did-you-know fact for you: 90 percent of the visitors coming to your website abandon without even giving out their contact information. This means that you are not getting the information that you needed to convert those visitors into customers.

There usually is a very small percentage of people who have already made their mind up regarding the purchase decision. Then there are also those who are just browsing, are interested into making a purchase but considering. You can get them. As you provide a small chunk of value to them, they are sure to sink their teeth in. Offer them vouchers, discount codes, free chapters of a book, a free report, coupons etc. In return, simply ask for their name and email addresses because another key here is to keep it short and sweet. This means less work on the forms, phew! But remember, this is just to get their attention and information out of them. Once you have the information, study their behaviors, email them to ensure whenever they are ready to buy, you are the one they want to approach.

2.       Loading time matters

Loading time of website is like that make or break point: You either lose your customer here or make one. Since everyone is using a mobile device to access the world of web, faster loading time matters. So make notes regarding the fact that it will be accessed on multiple platforms of multiple sizes and varying network connection speeds. So keep it simple and basic.

3.       Image optimization

Massive images look good, really good. Gorgeous websites flaunting those are really eye-catching. But how much do they sabotage the loading times, very little of us are aware of that.

If you just look at the kind of connection people are using on an average, they are on a mobile network with 3G, 4G or even above, or perhaps a fast broadband if not that. Fair enough, this is all high-speed stuff. But while massive images can slow these down, you can also choose to make them responsive to appear correctly on the mobile devices or tweak with their sizes. Use tiles instead of a hero image if you can. While hero images leave a lasting impression but if you can do better, that would be great!

4.       The fight over fancy code & dull code

Many consider placing a fancy code in place. It is because people prefer a fancy, showy website over a dull one. Nonetheless, there could be so many perfect substitutes to slower loading graphics or animations that could make your website equally appealing and attractive.

To quickly get things working, use plain CSS3, HTML5 or JavaScript to create websites that are stunning. Given their simplicity, it will also enable you to have an edge over competitors who are still trying to make their website spectacular by means of using graphics that slow it all down.

There are so many amazing things that you could do to your website design to develop faster and efficient websites. Just make sure you keep the above-mentioned points in mind when planning to design and develop your website and you will do just fine!