The reason a website exists is to serve the person who has chosen to visit it. A common misconception companies have is that if they have a website built, people will visit.

In order to have a popular site, you’ve got to offer something to the user: information, interactivity, fun or freebies. Original content is important. Users may come to your site once, but to keep them coming back you’ve got to have fresh original content.

Most people will not read beyond a first sentence or a paragraph on the Internet; in-fact research suggests that suggests that the average user only reads 28% of text on a web page. People scan for the main points and then move on, therefore, content must be clear, concise and to the point. Try to reduce your content by half, and then by half again. You need to be ruthless.

After original content, another important feature a website should have is interactivity. The Web is an interactive communications medium that your website should reflect. Sites that involve the user and have a sense of fun or adventure will get more hits.

Another advantage of interactivity is self-generating content. By allowing your visitors to interact with your site they actually create content for you. News blogs and forums allow visitors to share information through stories they submit, and can help shape your site to better serve their needs.

Web users have short attention spans, so keeping the design simple is important. If the website does not immediately attract your customer and tell them what they want, they will move on in frustration. Provide room to breathe; make room for white space on the page through a combination of imaginative layout and typography.

Distractions on the page should be avoided. A home page that takes time to load and then has no information except a clever graphic, is time wasted. A website should be simple to navigate, easy to understand and above all, intuitive.