Us humans love simplicity. Naturally, we cling to things that don’t add to our already clutter-filled lives or don’t force us to think. This is how single page websites gained their popularity in web design. Their clean and intuitive design sets the reader up with a story-telling experience, leaving their one and only duty to continue scrolling at their own pace. Pretty simple, huh?
Before you start making moves on your next website, hold that thought for just a few minutes. As much as we love the simplicity, there are scenarios when a single page site is not the best move. No biased advice here, we’re just simply stating the pros and cons of each to help guide you towards the best-fitting decision for your new site.
Here are 8 variables to consider during your preliminary research with the designated winner starred:
1. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – Multi-Page for the Win
If you had to base your decision off of one variable, this might be the one. If you’re not familiar with SEO, it’s time you read up. Having a good SEO strategy results in your page showing up before competitors on search engine results pages, which is more crucial to the success of your business than ever before. Because single page websites only have, well, one page, you’re limited on the amount of keywords, meta tags, and descriptions you can use. On the contrary, multi-page designs allow for every page to be optimized. The more pages your site has, the more opportunity you have to use a variety of key words. In the eyes of search engines, this improves the overall credibility of your site, giving it the recognition it deserves.
2. User Experience – Tie-Breaker
Depending on your site’s purpose, either can prove beneficial in the user experience category. Do you have just one offering or one call-to-action? The user will benefit most from a single-page site. If you’re site is heavy one information and has multiple offerings, a multi-page site will create a better user experience for the viewer.
3. Load Time – Single Page Can’t Compete
Load time on websites is one of the leading causes of page abandonment, making every second matter. Because all information is one page, single page sites are prone to lengthier load times. With multi-page sites, the content is dispersed throughout, allowing for more condensed pages and a quicker load time. If you plan on cramming a lot of information into a singe-page site, think again.
4. Conversion Rate – Single Page Wins This Battle
By eliminating the chance of distraction or confusion, single-page sites arguably have higher conversion rates than multi-page sites. Being that the user only has one page to review before the CTA (i.e. making a purchase), they have less time to talk themselves out of going through with the purchase.
5. Mobile View – Both have Pros
Both single page and multi-page sites have advantages here. Single-page sites are developed to be responsive with any tablet or phone, however, it’s important to consider that endless scrolling may start to feel laborious for the user. Don’t lose sight of the user experience here.
6. Social Sharing – Multi-Page Takes the Gold
Ever tried to share a link to a friend only to get a confused response out of them? Because single pages only have one URL, you can’t exactly control where your friend will land on the page (it will always be at the top of the page). If you’re trying to reference something two-thirds down the page, your friend will have to put in a little bit of work (scrolling’s hard, ugh) to get to the desired content. In opposition, multi-pages give you more flexibility and control when sharing the link. The view can be directed to the exact page or message that they were intended to see.
7. Analytics – Round of Applause for Multi-Page
With a single-page site, all users will land on that one page and, in turn, you will lack the analytics to know what reels your audience into your site. With a multi-page site, you can keep stats on what pages draw in the most traffic and allocate more of your efforts to these popular service lines, articles, etc. Web analytics can help out tremendously in your marketing efforts- be sure to use them to your advantage.
8. Control of User – Single Page Shows up to Play
With one page, one story, and one call-to-action, the user only has one method to get through your site – simply by scrolling down. You control what they see first, and direct them to the single CTA. On a multi-page site, the user can click around at their own will, running the risk that they get distracted or bored before reaching a CTA.
The results? Multi-pages take the win, excelling in 6 of the 8 variables to consider, although, it ultimately comes down to the purpose of your site. A single page design makes the most sense for one-time events (psst, check out one that hayWire helped develop), or for simple resume sites. For companies or sites with a heavier amount of content, we will always recommend multi-page sites to help utilize the 6 winning variables from above.
Questioning what’s best for your next website? Get some advice.
