Convey the right perceptions
It takes more than you may think

Have you thought about how people feel when they use your web site? What emotions do they experience when they see your site for the first time? What thoughts do they have when looking for the information they want?

In a matter of seconds, perceptions are formed—the feelings, emotions, and thoughts we have about a situation. It's automatic. It's human nature.

Web site perceptions are formed from the site's overall experience—it's usability, visual design, performance, and content. Clear navigation. Clean design. Quick performance. Information that's easy to find. When done right, these elements work together to create excellent perceptions that are consistent with your business and your intentions.

In short, excellent web site perceptions result in more people who feel great about your site and your business.

Imagine if your customers felt great every time they visited your site. Imagine what they'd think about your business, and what they'd tell their friends. You can influence those thoughts and feelings by addressing your web site perceptions.

This is a great opportunity. By evaluating the feelings and emotions you'd like your web site visitors to experience, you can make changes to your site to convey the perceptions you want.

Tips:

• Strive for clean design
  Web site layouts that are visually busy can turn people away rather than make them eager to learn more. Visual noise—too many graphics, colors, text areas, animations—evokes feelings of unrest, confusion, even frustration. Whenever possible, use clean, simple layouts. Focus on presenting the content your visitors need along with just enough graphical design elements to complement the information and present the image you want.
   
• Find and fix any technical problems
  Technical web site problems—broken links, slow performance, incorrectly positioned elements—immediately create negative perceptions. Such sites feel unprofessional and could turn customers away. It's critical to test your site with different web browsers and settings, computer platforms, displays, and internet connections.
   
• Use appropriate photos and graphics
  Make sure the photos and graphics on your web site convey the emotions and feelings—to your target market—that are consistent with your business and brand. If you want to convey a sense of fun and enthusiasm, use photos with smiling faces or playful activities. Avoid photos where people look serious or disinterested.
   
• Leverage your existing brand identity
  Make sure your web site design includes elements that from your existing brand identity and marketing materials. Position your logo in the upper left corner of the layout so it provides a strong site identity. Use colors that match or complement your branding look. Incorporating consistent branding elements on your site can quickly help visitors feel a good sense of credibility about your business.
   
• Match writing style to perceptions
  Use a writing style that matches the emotions you want your web site visitors to feel about your business. Think about two or three of the most important words that describe the 'personality' of your business—professional, innovative, fun, creative, stable. Now read some of text on your web site. Do you feel emotions that are consistent with your business personality? If not, it may be time to make some changes. If you're looking for help, we can recommend some great writers.
   
• Give banners ads a proper place
  While ads and partnerships can be an valuable part of a web site, positioning banner ads throughout a web page can create negative perceptions. A great way incorporate banner ads into a customer-focused site is to devote a specific, consistent part of the page layout for the ads. At best it should be a small part of the overall layout, rather than a large area or having ads dispersed throughout the page. Your advertisers will get display space and your visitors will get a clean layout that helps them find the information they need and feel great about your site.

Need help discovering what perceptions your web site conveys? Consider our web site evaluation service.