Advisors Here Are the Website Design Terms You Need to Know
You’re a financial advisor, meaning that you know a lot more about finance than I do. And we’re a group of web designers and we know a lot more about web design than you do. So it’s ok if you don’t know what every web design term means.
But don’t worry, we’ve created a basic dictionary of some of the most used web design terms out there just for you. (For more from Advisor Websites, see: 3 Examples of What a Great Advisor Website Looks Like.)
1. 301 Redirect
A 301 redirect is a method for moving a web page to a new location. When would you use this? Let’s say that for the last five years your website domain name has been BestFinancialAdvisor.com, but now you want it to be UltimateFinancialAdvisor.com. You would use 301 redirect to tell web browsers that whenever someone types in BestFinancialAdvisor.com to instead take you to UltimateFinancialAdvisor.com.
2. Above the Fold
Above the fold is the section of a webpage that is immediately visible in a browser when it loads and doesn’t require scrolling. So make sure that any content you have above the fold of your website will leave a great first impression on the viewer.
3. ALT Attribute
Alt attributes describe the function of each image you have on your website. This helps Google determine what the image is and the topic of surrounding text. Hover your cursor over this image of the Advisor Websites logo to see an example of an alt text.
(Alt-text: Advisor-Websites-Force-Logo.png. Make the alt text say, hey there! This is an image of the Advisor Websites logo to show what an alt text is like, this will help with SEO).
4. Call to Action
A call to action (CTA) is used to ask viewers to perform a specific action. Text, images, banners, or buttons used in a persuasive tone are call-to-actions. For examples, you can check out our latest ebook.
5. Cookies
A cookie is a very small file that’s stored on your computer from a specific website. Each time you visit that website, your browser sends codes to the website. Don’t worry cookies do not usually contain anything dangerous or personal information. Why would cookies be useful to you? The data from cookies can tell you who visited your website, how often they visit, what parts of the website they visit the most, and their preferences. (For more from Advisor Websites, see: Why Advisors Need to Be Wary of Non-Responsive Websites.)
6. Color Scheme
Color scheme is the choice of colors you use throughout your webpage. You want them to be consistent, especially with your logo.
7. Conversion
A conversion is a measurable action. This could be a prospect signing up for your email newsletter, completing a contact form, or downloading an ebook.
8. GIF
GIF (pronounced jif) stands for graphics interchange format. Or in English: a file that is animated by combining several moving images. Here is an example of a gif:
9. Meta Tag
Meta tags contain information about a web page. The purpose of a meta tag is to help search engines