How Social Media is Impacting Web Design

Social Media is an ever growing focus within the web design world. First, I think you have to understand why more and more companies are requesting it integrated into their websites. There really are at least a few major reasons why companies are looking to really hit the social media aspect of the internet world pretty hard.

#1: Companies want social media to relate to their customers

Let me give you a short example on why this is important and why companies get that social media is important for relating to their customers. I have two grocery stores in the small community that I live in. Generally, everyone shops at one of the two. Unfortunately, one is significantly larger than the other, with cheaper prices, and probably slightly faster service (not necessarily better). The other one though seems still fairly crowded. They have regular customers who shop there, and despite paying slightly higher prices for their groceries and slightly longer lines that they have to wait in when there are only a few shopping lines available, people still are very loyal to the grocery store because they know the owner and feel like there is a connection there with him. People sell their cars at times in his parking lot because of the friendly “old-style way” of doing business. In the “old days” people had friendships and connections with people and it generally drove who they did business with.

It’s not so uncommon with social media. When people feel like they have a connection with the company, the employees, or even the owner, they feel more obligated to work with them. A good responsive social media platform can help build that trust between them and their customers.

#2: Companies want it for an easy way to entice customers to buy

More and more people are searching online and hanging around social media platforms. Whether it is twitter, facebook, or youtube the statistics show that people spend a lot of time there. Marketing 101 tells us that you go to where you potential customers are. Since people are hanging out in these places it only makes sense for companies to lurk around there also. More times than not, it is a good way to find people that may need the companies services. For example, a dentist might look for people complaining of a toothache or questing about getting their teeth whitened in an effort to advertise their services to the local community.

#3: Companies want it for the fresh content aspect on their website

Another great benefit that a lot of companies are looking for is a specific way to keep their website up to date that doesn’t require a lot of advanced knowledge or anything. Since they are already regularly visiting social media websites and regularly posting on them, it is a way specific avenue to be able to put a little bit of life into a stale website that never changes. A little life in a website is never a bad thing. The only problem is when you have a social media aspect integrated into a website and it’s not being used. Then it looks even more dead than a static website that wasn’t intended to be updated.

 So how does this impact web designers you might ask? Well, with all of the focus on social media being integrated into websites, it is often highly recommended that the feature be integrated above the fold where it will be easily visible. Also, people often have different requirements, but a lot of web designs I have been seeing as of lately have been ensuring that the social media aspects of the websites are highly visible. Often they are using contrasting colors or some other form of emphasis to draw it out from the rest of the design. I highly recommend to web designers that they ask their clients about their social media intentions so you can plan on this throughout the design phase rather than trying to incorporate it well after the design has already been developed.