What is Your Business User Persona?
While it may sound fancy, business user persona simply means getting to know who your visitors really are. Think of it as inviting your neighbor over for dinner versus just waving to them from across the street. When you invite them over, you get to know more about them than just the fact that they live nearby.
Since you can’t go out and interview all of your website users to get information about your site, creating a fictitious user who encompasses all the traits of your target audience is the next best thing. This fictitious user has his own name, age, and even has a specific platform he uses to access your website.
Why do I Need a Business User Persona?
Simply put, business user persona research can help you figure out what your visitors are trying to get out of your site. Business user persona research will tell you how a visitor navigates your site as well as how and if he finds the information he was looking for in the first place. After getting this data, you can get a better idea of what attracts your target audience and what may need some work. You’ll also get an in-depth look at how mapping out your wire-frames the right way can mean the difference between a successful site and one that tanks.
Successful Wireframe Design
No one said designing a professional website for your business was going to be easy. But it will be well-worth the effort. A wireframe that’s built correctly is crucial if you want your pages to flow logically. You don’t want your users to get frustrated when looking for your products and services. Those need to be front and center while the less important pages can take a back seat. Designing a successful wireframe also means making sure all the pieces of your page are in the right places. Your wireframe is like a puzzle; if one piece is in the wrong place, it just doesn’t look right.
Make Navigating Your Site Easier
When you’re creating the navigation on your website remember to keep it simple. Visitors like something they can use easily while still getting all of the information they need and want. Your navigation may be fancy with plenty of bells and whistles, but if your visitors aren’t comfortable using it, they’ll leave and find another one that is more user friendly. You want your visitors to feel welcome at first glance. You want your visitors to immediately know who you are, what you’re offering, and how they can take advantage of your products or services. This should all come in an organized website that’s easy to follow and makes your visitors feel at home. When they’re feeling cozy they’ll be more apt to stay and cruise your site. This is key to gaining their trust and keeping them coming back multiple times.
Placement is Everything in Content Structure
If you simply have great content on your website, congratulations, you’ve made it through round one. Now the trick is to place it so that people actually see it and read it. The best place to put the most important content is above the fold and on the left side of your page. This placement is like a big neon sign attracting your visitors and keeping them from losing interest. If they can’t find vital content they’re likely to move on to the next site.
While you want to have content in the right place, having too much can turn into a case of information overload. This makes visitors uncomfortable and will also prompt them to leave. You want to strike the right balance between content placement and content volume. It needs to be engaging and important in order to keep visitors on your site and encourage them to return.
