A new survey of 1,000 Canadians examines whether or not they would buy from a company with a poorly designed website. The survey was commissioned by Little Dragon Media, a full-service web design and digital marketing agency based in Toronto.

Survey Question & Findings

The survey asked 1,000 Canadians the following question:

Would you buy from a company that has a poorly designed, hard to navigate and outdated website?

• No. It makes me feel like I can’t trust them.
• Perhaps. But I’ll have to do more research.
• Yes. I don’t mind bad-quality websites.

According to the findings of the survey, 63.3% of all respondents said they wouldn’t buy from a company with a poorly designed, difficult to navigate, outdated website, because it made them feel like the company was untrustworthy. Interestingly, when demographic filters were applied to the survey results focusing specifically on females, the percentage increased to 66.5%. Additionally, an astounding 75.3% of females 65+, indicated that they wouldn’t purchase from a poorly designed company website, because they felt they couldn’t trust the company.

Based upon the survey results, although all too often overlooked by companies, web design has a profound influence on the purchasing decisions of consumers. The driving force that makes a visitor to a company website move forward with a purchase is trust. If a website is well designed and easily navigable, it influences the consumer’s sense of trustworthiness in a company, thereby increasing sales.

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“These survey results are interesting, but unsurprising. Good website design is so essential for a company to thrive online. Because such a huge percentage of consumers are turning to online purchases, companies must have optimal websites to set themselves apart for competitors. The competition is stiff, believe me,” stated Amine Rahal, founder of Little Dragon Media.

The next most popular response amongst Canadians surveyed, at 29.8%, was perhaps they would purchase from a company with a poorly designed website, but they would have to do more research. When demographic filters were applied targeting specifically males between 45 and 54 years old, 40.4% of this age bracket indicated this answer.

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The final response was “Yes, I don’t mind bad-quality websites”. 7.1% of respondents indicated that the quality of the website had no bearing on their decision to follow through with a purchase. Curiously, when demographic filters were applied to the survey results, the percentage nearly doubled to 13.6% for males between 55 and 64 years old. Conversely, only 6.2% of females from the same age group selected this option.

The overall conclusion of the survey is that given the astronomical number of business websites available for consumers to choose from, ultimately, a company must have a well designed website in order to stand out.

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