We’re often discouraged by the state of the average company website. They’re often deflated, use old school tactics, and stuff users full of useless information – at best, the sites are glorified brochures.

Does this sound familiar? If so, you’re losing serious ground to your competitors. 2014 no longer asks nicely for a decent website design with all bells and whistles attached, but demands it. Here are a few ways that you can get there.

A website design with videos instead of text

The dreaded ‘wall of text’ is an easy way to scare off potential customers. They’ve come to your site ready to be engaged – the last thing they want to do is read a boring essay.

With video becoming more accessible and faster to load than ever, companies are taking serious advantage of platforms such as YouTube. Embedding rich media has become simple, even for the technophobe.

Giant product images

Monitors give you much more real estate than your average brochure, especially these days. 27” monitors are becoming increasingly common, giving graphic artists a massive canvas on which to show their wares.

Don’t be limited by browser size either. Allow your images to extend as far as your customer chooses, with high quality snaps stretching to match. With increasing broadband speeds, loading massive images is no longer a problem for the average web user.

Constant updates (Through CMS)

Visitors expect companies to be littered with updates, change, and new and exciting ways to engage with your brand. Sitting still is the same thing as going backwards.

Ensure you keep your site up-to-date, even if that means adding a blog article every month or two. Achieve easy updates by going for a content management system (CMS) that allows you to add content quickly and easily through your web browser.

Scrolling websites

The power of the scroll first hit the web scene in 2012 and it has grown in leaps and bounds in the past couple of years. With the advent of swipe technology, it’s more intuitive than ever.

It allows you to present information to your user in stages, slowly giving them a sales pitch in the order that you want. When it comes to conversion numbers, scrolling websites can make a huge impact.

HTML5

Performance, design, and functionality have been given a monumental boost through HTML5. This group of online technologies allow you to give your website a modern edge without encroaching on usability. Moving images, intelligent navigation, and flash-like effects are simple to add and work on a wide range of devices.

Delivery of experience

Visiting a website isn’t just about reading a little blurb about the organisation or company. It should go beyond a mission statement and a couple of arbitrary pretty pictures.

It’s all about delivering a full experience – engaging content, rich media, usage of third-party functionality, and embedding social media. Users expect all of this (and more).

These strategies are just the start – there are multiple ways in which you can extend your online presence to being more than just a boring brochure. If you need a little bit of advice or a nudge in the right direction, give your trusted Bristol website design agency a call.