In 2004, a team of researchers in the UK published an article titled “Trust and mistrust of online health sites” in a professional journal. They had researched the impact that website design has on consumer trust, and the findings were revealing.
While the recent marketing mantra has been “Content is King,” this survey revealed that even good content can be undermined by poor design. In fact, when asked to describe why they mistrusted a website, 94% of the comments were directly related to web design elements.
Because trust is a particularly valuable commodity in the insurance industry, the very least an agency can do is to sustain a trustworthy online presence. How can you tell if your agency’s website is hitting the right notes? Use these components to review and rate your site with an objective party.
During the early days of the internet, it wasn’t uncommon for sites to be busy. However, as with most things, advancement leads to simplification. To appear modern and reliable, your site should avoid overly complicated layouts and keep attention focused by limiting distractions.
Make sure that the fonts you use are easy for anyone to read. Ornate fonts or fonts that are too small (or even fonts that don’t render on certain browsers) can deter first-time visitors from taking the time to learn about your unique value.
While simplicity is important, you don’t want to be boring. Choose a palette of three colors to use throughout your website: a primary color, a secondary color, and a highlight to use for Calls to Action and other elements that you want to draw attention to. In the same vein, choose interesting, sharp images to accompany the text on your webpages to make content more engaging.
If your sites takes longer than 8 seconds to load, you’ve lost your prospect. It sounds crazy, but that’s just how impatient we’ve gotten. Be sure that images and other files are no larger than they have to be to appear clear and attractive on your site. This helps to keep load times lower and your site speed faster.
If web design and other digital marketing tasks are out of your wheelhouse, get in touch with the insurance marketing specialists at AgenciesOnline. We help independent insurance agencies build a robust online platform that will grow their business around the clock.