How a Vertically Formatted Website Can Help Your Business

Vertical formatting is a powerful design principle, and when used in the digital space, it can give you the ability to create a visually compelling, visitor-centric website that engages viewers and gets them excited to learn more. Sounds good, right? So let’s talk about some of the ways a vertically formatted website can be helpful to your business. Here are some key benefits of incorporating vertical formatting into your company’s website design.

Vertical Scrolling

Vertical scrolling allows you to construct a single-page website (read: fewer clicks involved to get from A to B) comprised of several different modules that can be viewed by scrolling down the web page, or by clicking certain elements on the page that will automatically scroll down to the target module for you.

This lends a storytelling aspect to your web page, guiding the reader along in a logical fashion while at the same time making your website cleaner, less cluttered and more easily navigable. A successful vertically oriented website utilizes vertical scrolling in a way that makes sense for the user, allowing you to highlight the main information about your business in a “one-stop shop” manner.

Functionality

A vertically formatted site makes it very easy for visitors to find your content in an uncomplicated manner. For most visitors, the ability to come to a site and learn what they need to know as soon as possible is paramount. A vertical site delivers information in the most straightforward manner possible. Make sure your site navigation bar is at the top of the page, then organize information on your homepage vertically so it fits readers’ viewing reflexes.

Mobile Photo and Video

The recent explosion of mobile Internet usage has prompted many web developers to take a closer look at how they need to go about designing web pages, especially in light of the large variety of Internet-capable devices on the market. Compatibility with the widest range of mobile devices possible has become one of the primary aims of web developers, but careful consideration must be given to how people actually use their mobile devices when browsing the Web, especially in terms of mobile photo and video viewing.

For example, at the recent Cannes Lions festival in France, CEO of Snapchat Evan Spiegel reinforced the importance of brands using vertically oriented video to increase engagement. According to his company’s own research, the overwhelming majority of Snapchat users, when served with a horizontal video, simply would not rotate their smartphones to enable the video to be viewed in full-screen mode. While this may seem like a somewhat trivial issue, most smartphone users just don’t want to have to rotate their devices in order to view video content.

A very vocal proponent of vertical video as the preferred mode for mobile content creation, Spiegel recently joined forces with WPP and The Daily Mail to create Truffle Pig, an ad agency that will focus exclusively on developing and shooting vertical videos for brands that want to advertise on mobile screens. John Steinberg, CEO of The Daily Mail North America, stated that Truffle Pig represents “a bet on a vertical future,” and that all viable mobile video content will eventually be vertically oriented.

So what does this mean for your business? In short, vertical formatting gives you a distinct advantage in terms of being ready for the changes that are happening in the ever-evolving world of website design, especially when it comes to mobile content creation. By focusing on vertical formatting with your website design as well as your photo and video publishing, you’re positioning your business to accommodate the widest range of content viewing devices, whether desktop or mobile. This will in turn give you access to the largest number of viewers possible, which is a key element of gaining more exposure for your business.