Whether you created your website to shout your radical views on abortion or to draw attention the best crab legs west of the Sierra Nevada, you have (perhaps) unknowingly composed an argument.
Most people nowadays see an argument as a disagreement, usually oral, between two people. This is partly true. Firstly, argument is only sometimes oral. Secondly, argument is actually a series of reasoning, whether that reasoning is based on logic or emotion depends on the aim of the arguer and is not always a disagreement. And thirdly, only occasionally is an argument actually contained between two people. On second thought, that above definition wasn't true at all.
So how does argument relate to a website? Like a well-framed argument, the content of a website should be well-framed around its point. When looking through potential web design consultants or designers, or even looking to draft the content of your site yourself, keep this reality in mind. What's the point of hiring designers that are just going to write about how good your employees are at their jobs? A potential customer won't know the difference between you and your competitor. You must convince him.
And how does one go about creating a convincing argument? Well, let's take a trip back to your Freshman Composition 101 class.
Logic
Alright, we're going way back here. All of the way back to almost 2,500 years ago in Ancient Greece: there we meet a rather popular chap named Aristotle. Just like he taught Alexander the Great, he teaches us that logos, the logical foundation of argument, is the most crucial to making your point. Without logos, your line of reasoning is likely a fallacy-ridden, bare bones composition of third-grade thoughts.
The key word in considering logic is 'proof.' 'Proof' as in "can you give me 'proof' beyond a reasonable doubt that my client is guilty?" Statistics and factual data about your company or your industry bodes very well in studies of persuasion. Nothing speaks more to your reliability than the fact that you replaced more roofs last year than any other roofing company in Massachusetts.
Informed opinions and quotations (of a non-fallacious, unbiased nature) that appeal to the potential customer's reason work doubly as well. Putting a quote from the surgeon general warning people to stay clear of fad diets on your website's header will distance your diet plans from fad diets and make the quote worth putting in because of the minimal space it takes up. A news section on the front page can show how your industry is booming or company news to share with stockholders.
Keep in mind that all business decisions are made from the root of logic. If you're like most businesses and have customers that are mostly from other businesses of a different industry, you must target your site's logos to influence them before they lose interest.
Emotion
Emotion from a web page means nothing more, in most cases, than your site's aesthetics. Unlike Hitler and Mussolini, your site cannot convince someone on emotional appeals alone. Although a few well-placed poignant appeals can have a great effect, emotion really takes a back seat to logic when you're a business. Now it's a different story when you're posting in a blog on your personal website, but trying to persuade steakhouses to buy from your slaughterhouse because of how much you care about your cows isn't going to help much in the end.
So when all is said and done, and although most people do not like admitting it, a clean web site layout with good, helpful visuals will have an impact on a customer's final decision. But why do aesthetics not matter as much as content? Consider one of the oldest philosophical questions in mankind: what came first, the chicken or the egg? Well, certainly there was an internet before there was Macromedia Flash or animated GIF graphics, that's why developers decided to make a place for text before designing a way to put images online. Content has always and always will be (or should be) the primary focus of a web page.
Another facet of emotional appeals is your content. For instance, an "About Us" page on your site has been proven the most effective, non-visual method of appeal to potential customers. Pairing your employee names with a picture is always smart (and cheap.) Also, packing a narrative about your business (or an allegory) with emotional examples will prompt future customers to consider your business as more than simply a name.
Credibility
Ethos, your credibility, challenges logical argument for the most important part of your site's content. Without credibility, the logic of choosing your company as a service provider is shrouded in questions about whether your company is really the right choice. Web designers should know this fact when they write your content; they should ask right away what makes you credible.
Credibility comes from both your site as well as your content equally as much, whereas the two previous appeals relied more on either one or the other. For instance, nothing could speak worse of your company than content that is filled with typos and basic grammar mistakes. Using lower-level vocabulary and incorrectly assessing your audience's expectations can be disastrous, especially for certain industries such as law and education.
Ethos is unique in that it relies on both logic and emotion. Such factors as a clean design of your site, a usage of third-party support (whether testimonials or links from past clients,) detailed web content, privacy policies, full contact details, and newsletters all contribute to proof that you are committed to your business and what it stands for.
When searching through the millions of web design companies out there on the internet, make sure the one you choose knows why you are looking to get online and knows what it takes to convince a potential customer to choose your service above the others.
