There are so many DO's when creating a website for your business, sadly there are so many more DON'T's that can really impact the success of your business. Here is a list of some things to avoid doing, plus some tips to help you create a dynamic and effective website:
Inconsistent Design
A very important factor that contributes to the experience when visiting a website, is design consistency throughout the website. A visitor's journey through your webpages should be as cohesive as possible, and you can do this by using consistent color schemes, images, text, navigation buttons, etc. on every pages.
Similarly, the way your content is written should be as uniform as possible, in terms of tone, length, and message.
Not only will this help improve UX, but it can also contribute to visitors becoming familiar with your brand.
Too Much Text
A common mistake a lot of new businesses make when creating a website, is overloading visitors with too much written content. It's an understandable mistake really, people are often very excited about the new product or service that they are offering and want to tell the world all about it.
The problem with this is that the average visitor tunes out pretty fast these days. You've only got micro-seconds before they form an impression about your business, and about 10 seconds before they head to another website, if they don't like what they're seeing.
Along the same lines, another common mistake when writing content on a new website, is the use of too much jargon or technical language. A safe bet is to write for all audiences in as clear and concise a manner as possible.
Quick tip: Effective videos and pictures are often a much better way to captivate visitors than text.
Cluttered Pages
Similar to the issue of too much text on a webpage, is the mistake of having just way too much stuff. Cluttered websites are visually confusing, and visitors don't know where to direct their attention, nor how to navigate to the information that they're looking for. The best way to avoid this is by focusing on presenting info / images / visuals that are truly essential to your customer.
Also keep in mind, that white space (also known as negative space) is actually a really effective way to help your visitors focus on what's really important. White space is simply blank space on a webpage in between elements. A company that has always done a great job with white space and using simplicity to guide their website is Apple.
Error and Broken Links
A fantastic website can easily be ruined by a glaring spelling mistake or a broken link that takes visitors no where. The very simple solution for this is proofreading and testing out everything on your website before launching the site. To do an even better job of proofing or testing your website, a great idea is to have a friend (or 10) go through the website as well to look for errors. It's so easy to miss our own mistakes, even though they are obvious to someone else.
Mobile Disasters
Often times when it comes to website creation, most of the focus goes towards developing a great desktop website. As a result, the mobile version frequently suffers and sometimes is just an outright disaster. Even though website development platforms like WIX and WordPress automatically generate a mobile version of your site when you working on the desktop version, it doesn't mean it's going to come out the way you hope. In fact, I've used such platforms to create desktop websites, and when I go to look at the mobile version it's all over the place. Elements are misaligned, headings are missing, and the user experience is a nightmare.
If your mobile website isn't as good, if not better than your desktop version, your business could really suffer. A recent study has shown that in 2021 "nearly three out of every four dollars spent on online purchases today is done so through a mobile device." As a result, many website designers (myself included) suggest that when developing a new website, focus should be on creating a mobile site, prior to the traditional desktop version.
If there was one overall theme or message that could come from this blog, it's this: WHEN DESIGNING A WEBSITE SIMPLICITY IS KING. A great website doesn't need to be super creative or filled with breathtaking images or in-depth content. Rather it usually should focus on use, instead of artistic appeal. Now, I'm not saying you shouldn't try to create a unique website that stands out from the crowd; by all means stray as far away from conventional as you'd like. What I guess I am saying is to consider your customer with everything you do when creating a website. You want your website to help, not hinder, a visitor to become a paying customer.
For more assistance on how to create a great website, and avoid some of the problems above, a staff member at Fevens Content Design is always available to help.
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