Design Your Wedding Photographer Website - Part 5: Navigation
Have you ever gotten lost?
It’s not a fun feeling - wondering where to go or what you should do.
I will be the first to admit - I am extremely directionally challenged. My hubby jokes that I need to wear bright clothing so he can easily find me.
It's a good idea, to be honest.
All jokes aside, getting lost on a website is no fun and a surefire way to guarantee I’m saying, “Sayonara!”
If I can’t find what I need or don’t know where to go next, I won’t waste my time searching.
Part 5 of our “Design Your Wedding Photographer Website” series is all about navigation, so you can ensure your website doesn’t leave anyone confused or frustrated.
There are a few parts to navigation we’re going to discuss today:
Top navigation (you’re website header)
Website footer
Call To Action (CTAs)
Top Navigation
Let’s start from the top (pun intended!). Your top navigation, or website header, is the set of buttons that link to the primary pages of your website. For most websites, this is a bar that extends across the top of your web page.
Your top navigation should be easily recognizable and the individual buttons should be high contrast.
Your top navigation should include:
Your business name
4-5 links to primary website pages
1 high-contrast button that links to your primary goal
Your top navigation should not include:
Links to every web page on your website
Accordion or drop-down menus
Cutesy names - these links need to be extremely recognizable
Let’s break it down:
Business Name
Your business name can appear as either typed text or as your logo (uploaded as a graphic). One is not necessarily better than the other. Just make sure that your logo is easy to read, if you go that route.
This will be the biggest content block in your website header. Typically it is either left- or center-aligned.
Your business name functions as the Home Page button in your primary navigation. Do not list “home” as a separate button in your navigation - this is redundant and wastes valuable space! More on that next …
Primary Page Links
Your top navigation should include an additional 4-5 links to primary pages on your website. Do not include more than 5; this leads to decision overwhelm. We want to gently guide and highlight only the most important pages on your website that will lead directly to client conversions. The fewer the options, the better.
In addition, best design practices no longer recommend using drop-down or accordion menus that list all your web pages. This is overwhelming and can result in visitors going down rabbit holes that don’t lead to conversions.
So which pages should you include in those coveted top spots? These are the most common choices for wedding photography websites:
About
Services / Investment / Packages / Experience
Portfolio
Contact
Blog
We want to guide visitors on a journey through your website. The order you place these in your top navigation, from left to right, will depend on the natural path you would like your visitors to follow. The order I’ve listed is pretty typical, although you may prefer to swap a few around. What is the story you want to tell?
It is vitally important to use easily recognizable names for these pages. I know it can be fun to get cutesy, but in the end it really doesn’t help you. Remember, your website should be a powerful marketing tool. To help website visitors we need to remember KISS - Keep It Super Simple. Don’t leave visitors confused.
So, what should you do if you offer multiple services that aren’t directly related, such as wedding and lifestyle photography or photography and videography?
Don’t list your individual services in the top navigation.
Instead, use your “services” button as a link to a Services Landing Page. This landing page is a brief introduction to each unique service you offer, with links to view more information. Individuals can then decide which service is right for them and visit the appropriate page that contains all the necessary information for that specific service.
Alternatively, if your services are extremely different and there is no cohesive way to tie them easily under one brand/branding style, I recommend separate websites.
Primary CTA Button
What is the primary goal of your website? It may be to:
Fill out an inquiry form
Book a consultation call
Schedule a session
The page that contains this action should be linked in your website's top navigation as a separate, easily distinguishable button. This button is usually on the top right and typically looks like a button (as opposed to your other links, which are text links).
The button title should clearly convey this is the action you want people to take when they’re ready to work with you. It can be titled something like:
Inquire
Book Now
Begin
Get Started
If your primary goal is on your contact page, and you do not have separate inquire/contact pages, then you can put your contact page as your primary CTA button instead of listing it with the other pages. If you do this, I strongly recommend using the title, “Contact” for the button.
Social Media Links
Let’s get controversial for a second.
Should you include social media links in your top navigation? I know it’s all the rage and it looks cool.
My honest answer? Absolutely not.
Here’s why I don’t recommend this, from the perspective of careful web strategy.
The ultimate goal of all of your marketing efforts is to book wedding clients. Your website is the first step in the client booking process. Everything funnels to your website. So why would you include an item in your top navigation that leads away from your website? You’ve got them where you want them! Don’t send them away!
Plus, how many times have you clicked on social media, gotten distracted, and never gone back to what you were originally doing? This is a recipe for disaster.
Social media links don’t go in your top navigation. (But there is somewhere you can link them - more on that next).
Website Footer
Your website footer is a section at the bottom of your website that will appear on every page. Your footer should be high-contrast and easily identifiable as a website footer.
Here is what should go in your footer:
Links to Web Pages:
Links to all the primary web pages in your top navigation
Links to secondary web pages that clients may need
An easily identifiable link to your primary goal page
External Links
Social media links
A link to your client portal or gallery platform
A search bar
Your copyright information
Links to your legal policies
Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions Policy
Terms & Conditions of Sale Policy
Let’s break it down:
Links to Web Pages
Make sure to include links to all of your primary web pages (those listed in your top navigation). You need to include a “home” link as well.
Your footer is a place where you can also list any secondary web pages that you feel may be important. Depending on the size of your website, you may be able to list all of the pages, but I wouldn’t include more than 15-20 links. When considering what to include, think about what clients need and want to see.
Your primary goal web page link (the page you linked to with the “big button” in your header) should be easily identifiable in your footer. Feel free to use an actual button. Alternatively, if your web design platform lets you create multiple sections within your footer, include your primary goal button as its own footer section above the primary footer section.
External Links
Your footer is a great place to list links to any social media platforms you utilize.
If you use a client portal or gallery delivery platform, linking to these external pages in your footer can greatly reduce client emails asking how to access these websites!
Search Bar
The purpose of having a search bar in your website footer is to aid individuals looking for something specific. Remember, we want to keep your website easy to use and ensure visitors aren’t lost or confused. Search bars help reduce frustration.
Copyright Information
To protect your business, you need to list your copyright information within your website footer.
It is very easy; here’s the formula!
Copyright Symbol - Business Legal Name - Current Year OR Business Start to Current Year.
For example, my business copyright is listed as: © Peach and Pine Designs LLC, 2025.
I could also list it as: © Peach and Pine Designs LLC, 2024-2025.
Make sure to update the current year every calendar year so you’re legally protected; I have a reminder set in my business management software!
Legal Policies
I must begin this section with a disclaimer: *** I am not a lawyer or attorney and do not offer legal advice.***
Alrighty - now that that’s out of the way -
It is a legal requirement that your website contain a Privacy Policy. In a nutshell, a Privacy Policy is a legal document outlining how your website collects, uses, stores, protects, and shares personal information. A Legal Policy protects your website visitors. You can learn more information about the federal - and global - requirements for a Privacy Policy here.
A Terms & Conditions Policy, while not legally required is highly, highly recommended, because this policy protects you. A Terms & Conditions Policy outlines how visitors can use your website. You can learn more about why you should have a Terms & Conditions Policy here.
Lastly, if you offer any sort of product for purchase on your website (physical or digital) you need to have a Terms & Conditions of Sale Policy. This policy outlines the rights and responsibilities of you and the buyer. It protects both you and your products.
If you do not already have these policies, you can access them a few different ways.
The Creative Law Shop - this is the site I purchased all of my customizable legal policies and contracts from.
Termageddon - I have not used Termageddon, but I do know that it is popular.
Enzuzo - This website has a generator for both the Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions Policy. Just know I haven’t used this service personally.
Calls To Action (CTA)
Calls to Action, or CTAs, are blocks of text that encourage visitors to take action. They are usually accompanied by a noticeable button that assists the individual in taking that action.
Do you remember when I said your website should guide users through a journey to your primary goal? CTAs help you accomplish that within the main areas of your website, so visitors don’t have to wonder where they should go next.
When done correctly, visitors will flow naturally from one page to the next before ending up on your primary goal page. This is the goal of a carefully crafted web strategy. Your website should be a web of internal links connecting one page to the next.
Now, this can get complicated, but here are the fundamentals to get you started!
First, think about the order of your top navigation links. This should be a guide to get started. Your home page should link to your about page, your about page should link to your services page, your services page should link to your portfolio page, etcetera etcetera.
Second, you can choose to link 1 or 2 additional, relevant pages. For example, your About page can link not only to your Services page but also to your Portfolio page. Keep these additional links to a minimum; remember the map you want visitors to follow.
Lastly, every page should have at least one link to your primary goal page. We call this your primary CTA.
Remember, this is the whole goal of your website - to get people to your primary goal page! If you can naturally scatter in more than one primary CTA, then do so!
So, where do you put CTAs within your web pages?
Relevant places within the text
For example, my Home page includes a brief blurb about me, with a link to my About page.
My Home page also includes an introduction to my Peach and Pine Experience with a link to my Experience page.
At the bottom of the web page
This is a great spot to introduce the page you want visitors to go to next (remember your top navigation order)
Alternatively, you can list 2-3 links to relevant pages so visitors can select where to go next, as discussed above.
After repeating sections
For example, if your portfolio page contains 3-5 separate portfolios, listing your primary CTA after each portfolio is an excellent idea!
On each blog post
Each blog post should have at least one CTA linking visitors back to your primary website!
Want to ensure your blog posts always have a CTA and are polished and ready to publish? Grab my free Blog Post Checklist below!
Keep reading … ⬇️
To wrap it all up, your website should never leave visitors frustrated and wondering where to go next. A well-crafted website will subconsciously guide users through your website to your primary goal. Use your three forms of navigation to design a website that is user-friendly and sets you up for success!
A comprehensive web strategy can be one of the most difficult parts of website design, but it’s vitally important. If you’re unsure about tackling it yourself, or just don’t have the time, I’m here to help!
My Peach and Pine Experience focuses on careful, strategic web strategy and client psychology to guide your website visitors from your home page to client conversions.
If you’re ready for a website that serves you as a powerful business asset to book your dream clients, learn more about my Peach and Pine Experience and schedule your complimentary consultation! I look forward to meeting you and learning more about your goals and dreams!
As always, if you have any questions or an idea for a blog post, send me a message.
I’m cheering for you!
Kylee
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