The case of user friendly websites will forever be a trending issue. This is because time are constantly changing and the same goes for the criteria for a user-friendly website. It is not the case of installing woocommerce product bundles or woocommerce name your price anymore. There are also indications that the best way to improve the SEO ranking of your website is by focusing on the needs and demands of your web users instead of those of search engines. Crazy, isn’t it? All the same, the quest for a user-friendly website continues. I am not trying to get in the debate; I am just focusing on helping web owners and operators out. I will do that by giving them some tips to build a user-friendly website.

Ensure it is mobile friendly 

Mobile is the new Treasure Island and you will be robbing yourself of some major traffic if you do not join this particular trend. It is not news that over 85% of web users access the internet via their mobile devices. Of the remaining 15%, over 10% are individuals working in offices who may not have business with your website at that point in time. This means you will be dragging just 5% with your competitors. There are two major ways to optimize your website for mobile devices. You can either optimize your entire website for mobile viewing or have two versions (mobile and desktop views).

Ensure that it has easy to use navigation 

The navigation of your website plays a major role in its usability. Sometimes, your style of navigation is what makes it difficult for individuals to make proper use of your website. You should work on your navigation when developing or design your website. I usually suggest two steps navigations. This type of navigation that has a menu and a sub menu. This means that an individual will locate a feature on your navigation in no more than two clicks. For example, your navigation for your ecommerce store can be thus Phones> (Smartphones, Mobile Phones, Accessories). Besides your navigation, your search button should be at the top of your page and easy for web users to locate.

Ensure it loads at optimum speed 

When it comes to optimization for speed, people tend to think towards media alone. This may not be entirely true according to recent studies. Recent studies are showing that general overloading of websites causes it to lag. This implies that excessive active plugins may also cause your website to lag. Although it is debatable, you can still learn from it. Minimize the amounts of active plugins you have on your website, especially multiple plugins that perform the same function. Optimize images before you upload them. Remove the auto play features for videos and GIFs so that they can load separately not while the webpage is loading.

SEO Optimization is necessary 

SEO optimization is very necessary. However, it is best that you do not look at SEO optimization by looking at the demands from search engines. Look at SEO optimization by looking at the demands of web users. This is your best bet towards avoiding dark SEO techniques. Instead of keyword stuffing and other dark SEO techniques, try to work on the delivery of your website. Work on the links, headings and subheadings of your webpages. The links, headings and subheadings of your webpages should contain the keywords or topic in your content. Web users should be able to decipher the message you are trying to pass across by merely looking at the webpage link, heading or subheading.

Content remains the backbone of every website 

I cannot explain this well enough. The content of your website is what actually decides if your website is true to what it claims to be. In this regard, you should ensure that your content are top notch. They should be in line with your topics, links, headings and subheadings. Controversial topics can be tricky especially when they are not in line with content you are proposing. You should do well to avoid them. When delivering contents, focus on what web users stand to benefit instead of what you have to offer.

Ensure it has other necessary features 

This particular case is unique depending on your website. While it is important to keep plugins at the barest minimum, it is not good to starve your website of necessary plugins. Social media, chatbots, FAQs, comments and many other features are necessary integration depending on your website. If your website is an ecommerce website, checkout, forms, multiple payment platforms and many others are necessary for your website. The idea of user-friendly is relative. It all depends on your ability to know your audience and tailor your website to suit them. These tips will equip you with ideas on how to go about that

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