There are several concepts that tend to play a major role in web design and ensuring your website has the right elements to serve as an advertising medium, and one of the single most important here is accessibility. Ensuring your site is equally accessible to all people, including those with disabilities, is a huge deal – not only for obvious moral reasons, but for strong search engine rankings and other areas that impact your marketing. 

At BWP Communications, our extensive range of marketing services includes high-quality web design solutions that will keep your site accessible and within all necessary guidelines at all times. What do we mean when we talk about accessibility in web design, why is it so important, and what are some of the key areas to evaluate with accessibility in mind? Let\’s have a look.

What is Website Accessibility?

For those who are just learning about web design, it is important to note that website accessibility refers to the ability of all visitors, regardless of ability or disability, to browse and use your website. This means that no matter if a person is blind and using screen reader software, a person has low vision who needs enlarged text, or someone with motor control issues needing keyboard navigation on the site, those users can access all elements of the website.

Why is Website Accessibility Important?

Website accessibility is incredibly important for several reasons. For starters, it is simply the right thing to do – everyone should be able to access websites no matter what their abilities may be. It simply makes sense to ensure that everyone has a fair chance to explore your site.

Beyond this, accessibility is becoming a larger and larger factor within both legal and marketing areas. Many large bodies, such as the EU with its 2020 Web Accessibility Directive, are poised to enact laws and regulations that require companies with web presence to have their sites accessible. This means that if you don’t meet these standards, you could face penalties or other ramifications. As well, search engine rankings are increasingly taking accessibility into account when scoring sites.

For these reasons, having an accessible site is extremely important for any business. Our next few sections will go over some broad themes that play a role in accomplishing this, all of which we\’re happy to assist you with.

HTML, Tags and Headings

For many websites, some of the most important elements to consider when it comes to accessibility are related to HTML and its associated tags. Essentially, these elements serve as instructions for the browser on how to display a website, but also provide additional information that can help those with disabilities access more of your site.

For instance, headings play an important role here – they can be used to provide structure to the page, and allow screen readers to skip through sections with ease. These should be used when appropriate, and always in a hierarchical manner – i.e., you don’t want a <h3> heading followed by an <h1>, as this can confuse the structure of the page.

Alt Text for Images

Another important element to consider is alt text for images. This is simply a snippet of text that goes along with the image, and describes it in brief. This helps those who are using screen readers understand what the image is depicting, and can also help with SEO rankings.

Let\’s say, for example, that you have a picture of a car on the homepage. Rather than just leaving it as is, alt text allows you to provide an additional bit of information – such as \”red sports car parked in front of green trees.\” This provides more context and clarity to those who may be using assistive technology.

Menus, Forms and Tables

As people are navigating your site, one of the key elements to consider is making sure forms are easy to complete. This means ensuring they’re laid out in a way that\’s logical and easy to understand, and should also include labels for any input fields.

In addition, menus should be laid out clearly and always provide clear paths for users to take. If you’re using tables for data representation, be sure to include the appropriate headings and rows that make it easier to understand.

Compatibility With Screen Readers And Other Assistive Technology

To accommodate those using screen readers, it’s also important to ensure that your website is compatible with these programs. This will allow people to navigate through the site without encountering any errors or issues.

There are also other programs and elements that you may want to consider, such as providing additional fonts or colors for those with colorblindness. Doing some research into different types of assistive technology can help identify potential areas where your site could be improved.

Alternative Keyboard Support

Finally, it\’s important to make sure that your site can support alternative keyboard formats, such as braille or multilingual keyboards. This will ensure those with disabilities can use the full range of your site without difficulty, and that all users have a positive experience no matter what type of input device they’re using.

These are just some of the ways that you can improve accessibility for your website. By taking the time to make sure these elements are taken into account, your business can benefit from having a site that’s accessible to all – and get the SEO and marketing benefits that come with it.

For more here, or to learn about any of our web design or other digital advertising services, speak to our team at BWP Communications today.

There are several methods by which clients will judge your ecommerce business as they interact with it, and your website and its design are often items at or near the top of this list. Quality web design, therefore, makes a huge difference in the success of many ecommerce businesses, and offers value in several different ways. 

At BWP Communications, web design is just one key piece of the comprehensive digital marketing services we provide to clients, which also includes branding, social media services and even forms of print and physical marketing as well. What are some of the key areas of value that quality web design offers to any ecommerce business, large or small, and how can you be sure to capitalize on each of these areas by utilizing pros like ours? Here\’s a simple primer.

Making a First Impression

One of the single biggest benefits of utilizing the services of a professional web designer is that it offers you an opportunity to make a strong first impression on any potential clients who visit your website. After all, if their initial experience with your site isn\’t positive, chances are they won\’t stick around for long or come back in the future.

A good design makes sure that prospects see an attractive, easy-to-navigate website right away, and this is likely to draw them in and encourage them to explore what you have to offer. Similarly, a quality design also helps make sure that your site looks great on any device – desktop or mobile – ensuring that people can access it easily no matter their platform of choice.

Crafting – and Placing – Quality Content

Content is another key aspect of any website, and a good web designer is likely to understand how to organize it in a way that\’s both visually appealing and easy to digest. This organization might include the placement of images, videos or other multimedia content alongside written text pieces, all designed to draw attention while also providing useful information.

In addition, good design also helps ensure that your content is in places where prospective clients are likely to find it. This includes not just on the main page, but throughout your site\’s various pages, categories and blog posts as well.

Ensuring SEO Functionality

Another major benefit of quality web design is that it can provide an edge when it comes to achieving higher search engine rankings. This is true for both organic searches and \”paid\” ads, as good designers will be able to ensure that your site utilizes the most effective titles, meta descriptions, tags and other elements – all designed with the search engine in mind.

For those unaware, these kinds of back-end elements help ensure that your website is optimized for Google and other search engines and the \”crawlers\” they use to find and index content. As a result, quality design can bring more traffic to your site – and therefore help increase sales as well.

Creating a Functional Shopping Experience

No ecommerce website can be truly successful without having a functional shopping feature – which is another area where a professional web designer can come in handy.

Good design ensures that prospective customers have an easy, intuitive experience when shopping on your website. This includes making sure the checkout process is simple and straightforward, as well as features like providing secure payment options and allowing for the storage of customer information (such as address and payment info) for future orders.

A professional web designer is also likely to include recommendations for online marketing campaigns and other strategies to increase sales, as well as tools that make it easier for you to track those sales.

Consistent Branding and Design

Consistency also plays a big role in the success of many ecommerce sites, and a good web designer will make sure that your logo, visuals, color palette and other design elements are used across all of your online channels. This kind of consistent experience can help build trust with prospective customers, as it\’s easier for them to recognize and remember your company when they see those same design elements again and again.

For instance, a great designer will make sure that your website, social media accounts, emails and other online channels all have a similar look and feel. This can help strengthen your brand as you engage with both current and potential customers.

Ultimately, quality web design is an invaluable asset for any ecommerce business – one that has the power to make or break the success of your site. With the right design, you can create an engaging and successful ecommerce website that will help your business reach its full potential.

For more here, or to learn about any of our branding agency services online or in print, speak to our team at BWP Communications today.

There are a few concepts and buzz terms that carry a lot of weight in the world of digital marketing, and one that\’s at or near the top of most such lists is \”brand awareness.\” You\’ll hear this term constantly if you\’re playing a key role in your company\’s marketing efforts – what does it mean, and why is it so important? 

At BWP Communications, we\’re proud to offer a wide range of both offline and digital marketing expertise, with services ranging from web design and graphic design to product launches, strategic messaging and more. What exactly are we referring to when we talk about brand awareness, why is it such a vital concept, and what are some simple concepts for helping improve your company\’s brand awareness? Here\’s a deep dive.

What is Brand Awareness, Anyway?

For those new to the term, brand awareness can be defined as a measure of how familiar consumers are with your company\’s offerings. It covers everything from name recognition and logo recall to customer sentiment towards the business and more.

Put simply, brand awareness is about making sure that people know who you are, what products or services you offer, and why your offerings stand out from others. Many marketers consider there to be three basic \”levels\” of brand awareness:

• Name awareness: The simple recognition of your brand name, either through word-of-mouth advertising, print or digital campaigns, or other methods.
• Product/service awareness: When customers are familiar enough with your offerings to recognize what you specialize in, and understand the unique value that you can offer.
• Brand characteristics awareness: Finally, when the public is familiar with more than just your name and offerings. They understand the essence of your brand, the values that drive it, and what sets you apart from the competition.

Why is Brand Awareness So Important?

The importance of brand awareness can\’t be overstated – this metric is closely linked to your company\’s overall success. There are several specific ways in which brand awareness factors into company growth:

• Familiarizing more people with your products: Brand awareness helps to spread the word about your offerings, which can lead to an increase in sales. For instance, if you have an e-commerce business and people are more aware of the products that you offer, they\’re likely to purchase them if they\’re in need.
• Building trust: The more people know about your brand, what it stands for and its commitment to quality, the more likely they\’ll be to trust it. This can create a powerful word-of-mouth effect, as people who have had positive experiences with your business will be more likely to recommend it to their friends and family.
• Increasing customer loyalty: As customers become increasingly familiar with your brand, they\’ll come to form an emotional connection with it – leading them to become loyal customers and advocates.
• Brand equity increases: As a result of the trust and loyalty that come with increased brand awareness, the overall value of your brand increases as well. This makes it easier to draw in investors or acquire customers who are willing to pay a premium for your products and services.

In conclusion, brand awareness is an incredibly important concept for businesses everywhere – one that\’s clearly worth investing in if you want to boost your success. Our next sections will go over how to attain and track brand awareness increases.

How to Improve Brand Awareness

There are a number of different strategies that can help businesses boost their brand awareness. Some involve traditional marketing tactics, while others lean more heavily on the digital side of things – let\’s look at some options for both.

Traditional Marketing: Traditional marketing still has an important role to play when it comes to increasing brand awareness. Tactics like radio and television ads, print materials, billboards, and more can all help to spread the word about your business.

Digital Marketing: Of course, digital marketing is essential for raising brand awareness in today\’s world. Digital campaigns like email marketing, social media promotion, retargeting ads, and search engine optimization (SEO) can all be highly effective for getting your brand name out there.

Giving your brand a voice: A unique way to increase brand awareness is to give your company a voice or an \”identity\” that people can relate to. Through this, customers will be more likely to remember and identify with your business – leading to increased loyalty and trust.

Tracking Brand Awareness

One of the most important aspects of boosting your brand\’s recognition is tracking progress over time. Doing so helps you measure the success of your brand awareness campaigns, and adjust them accordingly if they\’re not delivering the desired results.

Fortunately, there are a number of tools available to help businesses track their brand awareness, including:

• Social media analytics: These provide insights into how people are engaging with your social media posts and how your brand is being perceived.
• Search analytics: These show how often people search for your brand and what kinds of queries they\’re using, so you can see how well you rank for different keywords.
• Website analytics: Website analytics track details about the visitors that come to your website, including their geographical location and other demographic information.
• Surveys: For offline campaigns, you can use surveys to measure customer awareness of your brand. This is especially useful for gauging the effectiveness of print or TV ads.

By taking advantage of the various tracking methods available, businesses can gain a better understanding of how their brand awareness campaigns are working – and make adjustments accordingly if desired.

For more on this, or to learn about any of our marketing agency services, speak to our team at BWP Communications today.

From a marketing standpoint, few things are more important these days than your company website and how it looks to those who visit. If your website is old, outdated or otherwise suffering in performance or content, however, you could be at a major disadvantage – and even for those who are not experts in the digital marketing world, there are often some signs that this is happening to your website. 

At BWP Communications, it\’s our pride to offer a number of marketing and ad agency services to numerous featured clients around Salt Lake City and nearby areas, including a full suite of digital marketing – and web design is one key piece of this puzzle. What are some of the telltale signs we often warn clients about that their website is in need of a redesign or update? Here are the most notable to be aware of.

Traffic and Conversion Rates Dropping

In many cases, the first and most obvious sign that something is wrong with your website is when there\’s a drop in the number of visitors or conversions to your site from organic search. This can be due to numerous issues, including outdated content, poor optimization, or even a negative reputation online for your business.

For instance, outdated content can cause your website to be flagged by search engines like Google as lacking in relevance, or even worse – having incorrect information and being marked as \”spammy\”. Poor optimization means you\’re missing out on the chance to make it easier for potential customers to find your business online. And a negative reputation could simply mean that people have had bad experiences with your company in the past and are therefore less likely to visit or convert on your website.

No Updates in Years

Another sign that it\’s time for a website redesign is when you haven\’t had any updates in several years – if ever. A stale and outdated design can make potential customers feel like your business isn\’t reliable or trustworthy, and is likely to cause them to look elsewhere for their needs. Additionally, if your website isn\’t optimized for mobile devices, you\’re missing out on a major segment of the online shopping population – so it\’s important that you make sure your site is up-to-date when it comes to design and content.

Finding Broken Links or Dead Pages

You should be monitoring the pages of your website on a regular basis, and there are a few different things to be looking for while doing so. One is broken links, which can be an indication that the content on your site hasn\’t been updated in a while or has been removed – and this can cause visitors to leave your website quickly.

Additionally, you should check for any dead pages (pages where no information is present) as these could also point to issues with your site\’s design or content that need to be addressed.

You\’re Changing Your Branding

While this isn\’t necessarily a \”sign\” per se, it\’s still important to consider when it comes time for a website redesign. If you\’re changing your branding (logo, colors, slogans, etc.), then it makes sense that you should also update your website with the new look and feel of your business – as this will ensure a consistent story across all of your digital channels.

In many cases, such a branding change serves as a key opportunity to start from scratch with a new website that reflects the brand you\’re looking to build and market. For example, let\’s say you\’ve just opened a new store or added products to your lineup – you could use this as an opportunity to create a website with fresh content and visuals, helping ensure your company is presenting itself in the best possible light.

Functionality is Broken

In other cases, you may find that the functionality of your website is broken in some way, shape or form – and this could be due to a number of different factors. It might be that images aren\’t loading correctly, navigation isn\’t working as intended, or forms are not submitting properly.

Whatever the issue may be, it\’s important to address it sooner rather than later – as a website with broken functionality can make customers feel frustrated and, ultimately, leave your site.

Increasing Bounce Rates

When we talk about bounce rates, we\’re referring to the percentage of visitors to your website that leave without taking any further action. This could be due to a number of things, but one thing it can indicate is a lack of engaging content on your site – which could be a sign that it\’s time for a website redesign.

Having an easy-to-use interface with well-crafted content is essential when it comes to keeping customers engaged and encouraging them to move further along the sales funnel. If your website isn\’t providing this, then it might be time for a refresh – one that takes into account the needs of your target audience.

These are just a few signs that could mean it\’s time for you to think about redesigning your website. By making sure your website is up-to-date and optimized for its intended purpose, you can ensure that potential customers have a great experience when visiting – which will help drive more sales and leads. 

For more on this, or to learn about our web design or any of our other ad agency or marketing solutions for SLC clients, speak to our team at BWP Communications today.