Don’t Let These Common Web Design Faux Pas Tank Your Site
When developing a new website, there are a number of do’s and don’ts that can make or break the site. Here are some of the things to watch out for. If you already have a site, and it isn’t doing well (or at least not as well as you would like), check to make sure none of these issues are causing the problem.
Let’s start with your font type, size, and color. If it’s tough to read your content, the average viewer will simply move on. No one should have to hold a magnifying glass up to the screen to read your text. Make sure lighter color letters are contrasted with a dark background and vice versa. Use easily readable fonts rather than trying to get too fancy.
Broken links are another quick way to lose someone. If a viewer sees an article they are interested in, but the click brings them to a “page missing” display, they are likely to leave regardless of how cute your broken link page design is. Be sure to check and recheck links, both while developing the site, and again when you make any changes to the site. It’s better to delete a link altogether than to have one that doesn’t go anywhere.
Let’s talk about the quality of your pics. People will surf to your site from all types of devices with varying screen sizes and resolution. Don’t skimp on picture (or video for that matter) quality. Fuzzy or pixelated images are tacky and detract from the site.
“Take my money, please!” a user shouts at the screen while trying to find the link for checking out. This is a major problem. If you are running an e-commerce site, your number one goal is to get customers to buy what goes into their shopping cart. Make it easy to find and use.
Don’t do things that aggravate web surfers. Here’s a huge pet peeve for most people. We hate it when we surf to a site, and music or speech comes on full blast. Try not to let anything auto play unless you absolutely need it to. In such cases, make sure there is an easy to see and click mute button, so the user can quickly stop the noise.
Finally, make sure the site is simple to navigate. If someone can’t figure out where to go intuitively to find what they need, they may be more likely to leave than to use a search bar. Keep page layouts as simple as possible, and have the links under any menu heading make sense.
If you are having unexpected website troubles, your culprit is likely one of these extremely common errors in web design.
