Growth driven design (GDD) is the smarter way to successful web design. It’s an effective, dynamic approach that is based on real feedback and user data. This is very different from traditional websites that are more static in nature and based off hypothetical data. With the real-time value that GDD offers, it’s becoming a highly valuable approach for many websites, particularly ecommerce sites that depend on fresh, relevant and educational content.
In this article, we are going to expand on what growth driven design is, whether or not it’s right for your business and how to make it successful.
What is Growth Driven Design?
Growth driven design is a new technique to web design that is intended to create a high-performing website in less time. Rather than trying to complete the work needed to launch a new website and hoping that everything comes together in a seamless manner, growth driven designs leave room for continuous improvement.
There are two parts to growth driven design:
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Launch. On average, the first phase takes about a month to complete. A web design team puts together a strategy, builds an anticipated list of features and creates a rough sketch of the site, sometimes referred to as a “launch pad.”
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GDD Cycle. When the launch pad is complete, the rest of the year is spent improving the site. As you learn more about your user personas and their buying cycle, you can make the necessary improvements to your site.
Growth driven designs are definitely a new concept, but they are truly amazing when you think about their unlimited potential. If you would like to read a more detailed article on the difference between growth driven design and traditional design, we recommend this post.
In the meantime, let’s move on to the benefits of GDD.
What Makes Growth Driven Design So Powerful?
Just by understanding what GDD is and how it works gives you an idea of what the advantages are. Growth driven design has so much more potential than traditional design, and it’s done in less time and with less waste.
Let’s go over some of the clear benefits to GDD.
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Minimize risk
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More manageable workload
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Ongoing site optimization
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Continuous learning
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Not a “set and forget” site
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Drive more traffic
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Nurture more leads
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Close more sales
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Measure changes to see if they have desired impact
Could GDD Be Right for Your Business?
Growth driven design projects can benefit just about any business or organization with a website. But, it’s not for everyone.
There is a lot of planning, monitoring and implementing that needs to be done over the course of the year. You must also be open to change with GDD. If your business is comfortable sticking with what works and doesn’t do well with change, you can probably hold off on GDD for now.
If, however, your business enjoys being on the forefront of trends and remains committed to delighting customers, GDD is likely to be an innovative solution for your business.
Your organization may also be a good fit for growth driven design if you enjoy spreading out your workload (and your investment), you depend on your website to generate leads and you are happy to go live quickly, with improvements being made over time.
If you are planning to implement a growth driven design, follow the tips below for a successful experience.
What are Some of the Ways to Make GDD Work for You?
Growth driven design is creative, innovative and progressive. But in order to get the full effect, you must be willing to grow and evolve as well. Below are some tips for making a GDD project work for your business.
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Plan Ahead. Set goals that are specific, measurable and attainable. Your goals should also be relevant to your business and highly targeted. Avoid creating generalized goals that are hard to reach. Create goals that you can actively work toward.
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Create a Wish List. Before you go head first into a GDD project, create a wishlist of the features you want on your site. Sit down with your team and brainstorm all ideas that you find interesting, relevant and brand specific. In other words, what makes you different from your competitors?
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Put Together a Launch Pad Site. Once you have your most essential features listed, put together a launch pad site, which is essentially a starter site. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but it should include your “must haves.” There’s no need to wait, either. The purpose of a launch pad site is to get your website up and running quickly so you can start gathering feedback.
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Analyze and Develop. As you move through the months, analyze your site and make the proper revisions. If you find that visitors are bouncing off your homepage or not filing out your forms, think about why this may be the case. Apply the changes and re-test. Also pay attention to the things that are working so that you can do more of them.
Wrapping Things Up
At first glance, it may seem like a growth driven design is a time-consuming and complex process that you don’t have time for. But don’t let your traditional way of thinking limit your potential.
We are used to creating websites and then letting them run their course, so this feels natural. Unfortunately, we tend to waste more time and resources than we need to. GDD puts the power back into your hands so that you can launch a decent site quickly and then fine tune it over time to speak to your buyer personas and the journey they follow.
GDD is going to change the way websites are made. Do you want to be a leader or a follower?
