Your website, take two…The ‘golden rules' to a successful website redesign

Your website, take twoThe golden rules' to a successful website redesign

Companies arrive at the decision to redesign their website from a number of different directionssales, visitor traffic and length of stay, customer feedback, or a change in company goals and objectives. Reason notwithstanding, a five-to-six figure investment in a redesign creates the expectation the "new" site will be significantly better. While not an unrealistic expectation, it does require a specific approach to achieve the desired results.

Waltham, Mass.-based Fresh Tilled Soil is a user interface web design company that specializes in redesigns for companies ranging from Fortune 500s to startups. According to Fresh Tilled Soil CEO Richard Banfield, a successful redesign hinges on a company being able to step back and think like a customer or client to truly clarify the goals and objectives of the redesign.

"A redesign isn't necessarily about throwing out the ugly baby with the bathwater or covering it up with bells and whistles. It's really about analyzing what the current user experience is, then honing in on what the client would like it to be and developing a design to make that happen," said Banfield. "Usability is the essential and key end-goal of any successful redesign and there are three golden rules to making site usability and, eventually, the user experience, top-notch."

Those critical elements are:

Have a clear sitemap and organizational structure in place before major design work begins This essential step requires pre-planning in terms of prioritizing and preparing website content. With this information in tow, the user interface design process can begin and the redesign can be customized according to essential site features and content.

Consistent branding throughout the siteThere should be a certain degree of consistency in the design that's maintained throughout the website. This makes for a cohesive user experience in terms of company branding and positioning; it also helps make site navigation predictable and intuitive for users.

Intuitive site navigation and functionality Every successful redesign should make it easier than the previous iteration for the user to accomplish a given on-site goal (e.g. place an order, sign up for an event, find information, fill out an inquiry form, etc.)

"A good redesign improves both the overall site and the user experience," said David Knies of Launch Control: Brand Acceleration Consulting. "We partner with Fresh Tilled Soil because of their ability to paint a picture for clients of the user experience before they do any heavy duty design work. That not only creates a better end result but a smoother process because the client knows exactly what they are getting."

"We actually got called "ugly as sin" in a featured article from a major technology publication," said James Gibbons, Chief Technology Officer for LocalWineEvents.com, an interactive web portal tailored towards pairing wine lovers nationwide with wines and wine events in their area. "Clearly, it was time for an updated user interface that not only looked good but also enhanced the user experience and allowed all our content to be browsed with ease."

Continued Gibbons, "The main goal of our redesign was to create a clean, intuitive interface that provided a better browsing experience for our users. It was also important for us to showcase the areas that provide revenue for the site and implement a design that did not adversely affect our SEO. Fresh Tilled Soil addressed all our needs and provided an outstanding result."

"Everybody we work with wants to have a great website, that's pretty much a given. What the process does is clarify for the client what that means," said Banfield. "At the start, they might have thought they wanted a bunch of bells and whistles that increased sales. By the end, they realize what achieves that most effectively are not bells and whistles per se, but creating a delightful experience-- one that not only makes customers want to use their service or buy their widget, but return [to the site] later just because it was a cool experience."

For more information on Fresh Tilled Soil and their user interactive design process, including a view of their recently redesigned site, please visit www.freshtilledsoil.com.

About Fresh Tilled Soil

Since 2005, Fresh Tilled Soil has worked with more than 500 clients, delivering dynamic business websites for entrepreneurs and Fortune 500 companies alike. Passionate about technology, innovation, and business, Fresh Tilled Soil believes in building websites that deliver a great user experience and support business growth; as UI experts and web business consultants, Fresh Tilled Soil's goal is to provide entrepreneurs and clients with the best possible framework for supporting their individual web ventures. For more information, go to www.freshtilledsoil.com

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