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Homepage design ideas for top 3 online industries

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The neighbourhood mall was my home. I literally spent my childhood there because my mom was a department manager and she sometimes had to bring me to work. I spent all day in the toy department and she didn’t have to pay a nanny. Win-win!

Eight-year-old me knew the mall like the back of my hand. If you were to ask me if there was a certain store available, I could have even told you the exact directions to get to it.

Fast forward to 2012 and the human mall directory was now a teen. Shops have come and gone but there was one Internet café that intrigued me the most. 

From the entrance, you could only see long tables and high chairs. There were no computers!

At first, I thought the store was still under construction so I paid no attention to it.

After a few weeks, I noticed the store hasn’t changed and yet, I could still see people sitting with their heads down. 

I decided to sneak a peek and I found out that the computers were under the table and the people had to look down to see the monitor.

I rented a unit for an hour and had a stiff neck that night. The shop closed within 3 months.

Your website is your storefront

Now that most businesses are online, the browser is now a “mall” and every website is a “storefront”. There are over 1.5 billion websites on the Internet today. Of these, less than 200 million are active.

If you sell shoes and visitors can’t choose a single pair from your website (or have to strain their neck just to find what they need), your business is doomed – much like that Internet café I just told you about.

Web designers are challenged to make a website unique, yet familiar, at the same time. In this article, I will discuss homepage design layouts from the most common online industries: retail, financial services, and consultancy.

Web Design for Retail

In a retail website layout, the products are front and center. If you pay attention, you’ll remember that the shop’s name is almost negligible and all promotions, new offers, and best-sellers are highlighted instead.

This kind of layout needs a well-thought-out categorization of products, a smooth check-out process, and easy access to customer support.

website amazon
www.amazon.com
website apple
www.apple.com

Retail website design samples






All the websites above were designed by Deer Designer.

Web design for Financial services

Financial websites should be secure, informative, and simple. Security is a priority for websites like this to protect their clients.

The layout and information processing must also be simple because the easier and faster a client completes a transaction, the better.

Financial services websites are also recommended to have a learning page, where experts can guide users about money management. This is an added value that they can provide to clients.

Not only will it increase the brand authority, but also works as an effective marketing strategy.

website betterment
www.betterment.com
website wealthsimple
www.wealthsimple.com

Financial website design samples






All the websites above were designed by Deer Designer

Web design for consultancy services

Consultancy websites usually have a focus on the main consultant, and you will recognize them in the hero section. Some are too shy to be in the limelight but you’d still see their details on the “About Us” page.

These kinds of websites prioritize human interaction, which is why a lot of resources must be provided to visitors. Recommended materials could be in the form of articles, case studies, downloadables, e-books, lead magnets, and the likes.

Trust and reliability are pillars of consultancy businesses and they have to be established in the website from the get-go.

The way to do it is to display testimonials from successful clients. If you can dedicate a full page for it, even better! Just like how we did on our website.

Web design sample - Source Marie Forleo
www.marieforleo.com
website gary vaynerchuck
www.garyvaynerchuk.com

Consultancy website design samples






All the websites above were designed by Deer Designer

Design with the end-user in mind

It is important to remember that a website’s design is made for the end-user, not for yourself. Even if you are the founder or head designer, your target market’s preference must be prioritized.

You may feel that something is a good design, but if the user finds the opposite, then that design is not fit for purpose.

Your website visitors are the most important people to design for. Everything should be done with them in mind. This includes the visual design and the overall user experience.