Social media continues to flex its muscles. There doesn’t appear to be any slowing down among the industry leaders such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
If anything, the list of major social networking sites has continued to expand. Tumblr, Snapchat, and Vine come to mind as examples of rapidly growing newer platforms.
That being the case, how do you – as a business owner building a website, say, or a professional web designer working for clients – find ways to integrate social media into web design? It’s a question that has plenty of answers.
Focus on visibility
When its design firm wanted to drive more traffic to Park View Legal’s Facebook page, it put the primary focus on visibility. You too want to make sure site visitors know which social networks you’re active on and where they can find your profile.
There are multiple ways to do this, and you can get as creative as you’d like. First off, you’ll want to incorporate those familiar social media buttons on all the major pages on your site.
The more visible they are, the more interaction you’re likely to get. While you may opt to put them on your site’s footer, research has indicated this placement leads to lower conversion rates. You should try to place them near the header or within the actual site copy, instead.
The next major way to increase the visibility of your social profiles is to include vibrant calls to action or arrows that direct the visitor’s eyes toward social media buttons or links. When so many websites use social buttons, it’s vital that you find ways to stand out from the crowd.
Utilize the power of social proof
According to research, 80 to 95 percent of buyers’ decisions are influenced by some form of online reviews. Although there are hundreds of independent review sites, you can make things easier by incorporating some of your top social media reviews on your website.
Depending on the rules and service agreements with the specific social media site, you may have to follow a process, but it’s worth the effort. Social reviews can be included on product pages, the home page, or targeted squeeze pages.
Incorporate social login capabilities
If your website allows users to create accounts, consider streamlining the process by letting them log in with an existing Facebook or Twitter account. This makes the process easier, and it’s been shown to increase account registration rates across the board.
The added benefit on your end is that you’re able to learn a lot more about who your customers are, what they’re interested in, and where they’re located.
Unleash the force of social media
Social media is incredibly powerful. Nobody should overlook it when designing a website. It can play a major role in every company’s overall Internet marketing strategy and be seamlessly integrated for maximum efficiency.
By incorporating social buttons, inserting powerful calls to action, utilizing social proof in the form of customer testimonials, and encouraging social login, you can effectively combine social media and web design to propel your brand and increase conversions.