Are Slideshows Worth the Valuable Space?

By the year 2014, slideshows were used for business websites by designers across the globe. But like other design trends, it was a long-running fad that has steadily lost its appeal.

If you keep up with web industry blogs, you'll see a constant barrage of new designs going in and out of style. Minimalist design has been everywhere lately, and a popular trend popping up on more and more sites is the use of a video as a background image.

However, the one trend that truly stands out in recent memory are slideshows. They have been a predominant feature of business websites across all industries, and although they are slowly beginning to disappear, they're still very much in use.

The slideshow (or carousel) first became a serious trend because it gave small businesses something flashy and animated. It was an eye-catcher and an attention-grabber — a tactic to give a simple website something unique.

The theory behind the actual purpose of a slideshow is to display the primary services, products, or benefits of a business.

But, do they actually work?

Studies have been performed to determine whether or not featuring a slideshow rather than a static header image has any concrete benefits, such as click through rate, conversion rate, and online sales.

Any statistical advantages are few and far between. Here are just a few of the negatives supporting the demise of the slideshow trend:

• People rarely click on any slides other than the first one shown
• Consumers will ignore the slideshow and simply click the link they need in the navigation bar (if your website is built, organized, and structured properly)
• They slow down sites (especially on mobile) which hurts user experience and search engine optimization
• It takes away from your most important message by cycling through multiple promotions
• Visitors tend not to wait for the slideshow to change before clicking on what they need elsewhere

Case in point: slideshows don't get the job done. Sure, they used to look like a fresh, innovative feature. But now is the time to take advantage of that section of your site with something new to improve user experience.

Besides, if your website is created to display and organize your business information properly, a slideshow is as useful to get your customers where they need to go as a phonebook.

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