Website Enhancement(s) or Website Redesign: Fixing the Web Page Header

We are working with SinterClad, a manufacturer of sintered porcelain stone surface solutions, on enhancing their website.

Prior to our agreement with SinterClad we discussed either a full website redesign or improve upon the current website. The decision was to enhance the current site.

Sometimes a tweak, small change or enhancement/improvement to a website may be all that is needed and may be more beneficial in terms of cost, time and payoff.

First: Fixing the Page Header

One of the first items, and most important, was to improve the page header. The page header lacked some very important information:

• There wasn’t a phone number represented or immediate way to contact the company
• We learned SinterClad had showrooms, but a physical location wasn’t represented.
• There wasn’t any kind of CTA (Call to Action), especially to get people to setup an appointment to view a showroom.
• With an enormous product line, the only way to view products was to browse the entire product page(s).

Our Solution

Before we started on a new header layout and not to arbitrarily or randomly put ‘stuff’ in the header, we wanted to make sure it was the correct ‘stuff’, where it would live within the header, its priority, importance and style.

First, we sketched out a few examples, and then provided SinterClad with a few design mockups , showing various placement of important features.  They chose the following (which we recommended):

Notice the placement of each item, based on its importance, priority, given space and size.

1. Phone numbers were added so website visitors could immediately contact.
2. Physical locations were added; indicating 2 locations if visitors didn’t know they existed, to show size of company, and potentially pay a visit.
3. Email and social media channels were added for additional ways to contact.
4. A ‘Book an Appointment’ CTA (Call to Action) button was added to setup a showroom visit.
5. A Search box was added so visitors could search for products rather than browse. EXTRA: The search data is connected to Google Analytics, so we can track what visitors are searching for; a great asset in learning how their target audience ‘speaks’.
6. The main navigation was left justified to coexist and align directly with the logo, which visitors view first. Also, left justified to provide extra room for future tabs/links to the navigation.

The header appears on all pages. Sometimes visitors may not visit your homepage; they may enter from an interior page, so you better be ready and have that important information located front and center.

We’ll know more later on how well the new header is performing. We integrated Google Analytics and Sinterclad has boosted their advertising efforts. Stay tuned.

Next in the Series – Part 2: One Page Enhancements