What distinguishes a great website from a good one?

A good website has a presentable design, loads without any issues, and displays content correctly. In addition to offering the user the fundamental functionality they require, it might initially appear to be aesthetically pleasing. However, the deeper layers of refinement that genuinely improve the user experience are frequently absent from good websites. It might be a little sluggish, not mobile-friendly, or not search engine visible or accessible.

A great website, on the other hand, is thoughtfully created, paying close attention to every element of its performance, functionality, and design. It does more than just “work”; it makes the user happy, leads them through the content or services with ease, and creates a favourable impression that lasts. Here’s what sets a great website apart:

1. Performance & Speed
A great website should load in two to three seconds. Slow pages are not tolerated by today’s visitors. Great website developers use minified code, content delivery networks (CDNs), lazy loading, and image optimisation to speed up load times. They frequently use tools like Google Lighthouse, PageSpeed Insights, or GTmetrix to test the performance of their website.

2. Responsiveness on Mobile
Since most users browse on mobile devices, responsive design principles are used to create great websites. This implies that they automatically adjust to various screen sizes, be it desktop, tablet, or phone. To ensure readability and usability across all devices, layouts, fonts, images, and buttons are scaled appropriately.

3. Experience of the User (UX)
Excellent websites put the user’s journey first. Menus are easily accessible, navigation is simple, and scanning the content is a breeze. The information is arranged neatly, and the pages are free of clutter. The placement of buttons, colour contrast, typography, and interactive feedback (such as confirmation messages or hover effects) are all carefully considered. Every little thing is taken into account to boost user engagement and lessen frustration.

4. Availability
Everyone, including those with disabilities, can use a truly great website. This includes keyboard navigation, screen reader support, appropriate heading structure, semantic HTML, and alt text for images. The Web becomes more inclusive when WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) are followed.

5. Search Engine Optimisation
Search engines are taken into consideration when creating great websites. This entails having structured content, descriptive meta tags, clean URLs, alt attributes for images, and optimised load times. By improving the website’s ranking on Google and other search engines, these elements increase organic traffic.

7. Continuous Improvement and Testing
A great website goes through extensive testing, including performance audits, cross-browser testing, and functional testing, before going live. Following launch, comments are gathered and enhancements are made. Development is a continuous process of improvement that continues after deployment.

In conclusion, a great website excels in performance, usability, design, and strategy, even though a good website might accomplish the task. It supports corporate objectives, foresees user needs, and expertly represents a brand. Craftsmanship, consistency, and attention to detail make the difference, transforming a basic web presence into an impactful digital experience.