Updated: 15/08/2024
The abrupt changes and development in the internet and eCommerce technology have created an urge to expand across the borders. The ease of buying products at the lowest costs from neighboring countries is making the user search for alternative shopping resources. Thus, the businesses are outreaching to multiple regions in pursuit of making their products available there too. A website, which aims to do so, have to inculcate most of the factors in the design as these may help communicating a corporate message among varying cultures.
The design of a website plays a significant role in compelling the users to find more about the products and services it has to offer. Creating this charm and charismatic appeal in a design may need to understand various factors that differ in regions and cultures. Therefore, it requires a website design to be friendlier for a global audience or manage multiple version of a website that is tailored to cultural specific needs of the users.
For example, red bull has an international website version that displays a generic form of content with a passion for sports and adventure, whereas every country-specific version discusses things about the locals. Its version for the UAE has highly localized such as the text alignment is left to right according to the language it uses, the images are showing local faces, and a brilliant amalgamation of white color in the design. The design seems to be attractive and gleaming for the locals, as it suffices the standards of Web Design Jeddah and the neighboring states. Any business that may need to excel in its outreach campaigns may start molding the design to the needs and comforts of the users. Such a design communicates the core message effectively to different cultures. Following are some of the tips that can help you to do so.
Pursuing a multilingual website
Planning to reach out to potential customers across the regions and cultures may want you to pursue designing a website on a platform that is compatible with most of the international languages. For example, WordPress and Drupal are available in more than 90 languages. It has a Unicode that makes it easier to use multiple languages.
If you aim to make available your website in multiple languages, you may need to understand the space it occupies on the website. The English language is said to acquire less space on a web page in comparison to other native languages of Europe.
Understand Color Preferences
Every color has a different meaning, symbolism, and narration in different regions, cultures, and religions. A color you may intend to use for a positive message in one region may convey a negative meaning to the others.
For example, black color has varying meaning and understanding in different cultures. For some, it is a color of sophistication and formality, while for others, it is a sign of death, mourning, magic, and bad luck. In the same way, the red color may represent love, passion, and energy to the users from China, but at the same time, it may symbolize danger, stress, fear, and aggression in other parts of the part.
Blend the images with cultures
Adding images to your website is critical when you aim to propagate a corporate message across multiple cultures. For targeting a city, town, or province is easier as they all have a common culture to share.
They have a single narrative for the places, characters, genders, and body language that you use in photography. However, it may take a complete overhaul in the design for considering a global or region-specific impact in the images. The dressing and hand gestures too differ among cultures.
Know the cultural changes in design
The overall design that is color, text style, background, and a visual to text content ratio also differs between cultures and regions. For example, website design in most of the Asian countries demands the use of more visual content such as images and videos. The region may include Japan, China, India, and South Korea.
The use of bold and bright colors in such designs may be an overdoing for users from the United States and Europe, where simple and minimalist design is an ideal option. They prefer to have more text and white spacing that flooding the web pages with visuals. On the other hand, the design and color preferences in UAE are neither too light nor too heavy.
Get a design globally appreciated
A website with a simple design and template is the one that succeeds a lot in multiple regions and cultures. If you don't want to create multiple store views and language versions that are specific to a region and user community, then it is more viable to have a design that is accepted and appreciated by the masses across the globe.
Some of the best examples include Google and Facebook. Talking specifically about Facebook, we can deduce that selecting blue, as a theme color is one of the finest decisions as it has a positive connotation in most of the cultures.
The clean and clear look of Google also epitomizes the success of a minimalist design. Google did not try to exaggerate any of its potential or successful projects on its home page. It is a search engine that is why only includes a search bar with a search button.
Go Mobile Friendly
Mobile-friendliness was once an option, but a compulsion now. The increasing number of mobile phone users is making the websites to appear as clean and simple as these appear in other devices. The users have not switched to mobile devices for browsing the internet and using social media. Be you are your website works well on a variety of mobile devices either with a complete responsive design or a dedicated mobile page.
A successful website begins with the user in mind. Ensure your website is easy to navigate, intuitive, and delivers value quickly. The key to great UX is minimizing the number of steps users need to take to achieve their goals. Keep the interface clean, the layout logical, and provide clear calls to action.
With the majority of web traffic now coming from mobile devices, it’s essential to adopt a mobile-first approach. This means designing your site to be fully responsive, ensuring it functions seamlessly on smaller screens. Prioritize features that enhance mobile browsing, such as touch-friendly buttons and simplified navigation.
A slow website can drive users away before they even see your content. Optimize images, use proper caching, and minimize unnecessary plugins to ensure your site loads quickly. Google also prioritizes faster-loading websites, which can benefit your SEO efforts.
A beautifully designed website is pointless if no one can find it. Implement basic SEO practices like using descriptive meta tags, optimizing images with alt text, and creating content with relevant keywords. This will improve your site’s visibility on search engines and attract more organic traffic.
A well-structured navigation system is critical for user satisfaction. Organize menus logically, ensuring users can find what they need with minimal effort. Use clear labels for navigation links, and consider including a search function for large sites.
Brand consistency builds trust. Ensure that your fonts, colors, and overall style reflect your brand’s identity across every page. This helps users recognize your brand and fosters a cohesive experience.
A website is never truly finished. It requires ongoing updates and maintenance to remain functional, relevant, and secure. Regularly update your content, refresh designs when needed, and ensure that your security measures are up to date.
Final thoughts
Designing a website is a one-off job that you may jot down a few ideas and end up with a final product. It is a continuous journey of improving the layout, appearance, and ease for the end-users in browsing your website. To make the design communicate with international audiences, you may need to blend the design with cultural preferences at multiple levels.
Image Source: Educationmattersmag.com.au