Website design mistakes to avoid
So you’re planning on creating a website? You’ve done your homework and have a picture in your mind of what your website will look like. Before you go any further, let’s look at some of the common mistakes made by when designing a website.
High tech
Never use input boxes or links that open a new browser window. Another irritating distraction is music. Unless you have a music website, don’t use it. First time visitors may enjoy listening to music, but it will become annoying on subsequent visits. It’s best not to use any of these if you want visitors to return to your website frequently.
Complex backgrounds
You can surf onto hundreds of websites that offer complex backgrounds for free. Some of them are definitely works of art, but no matter how beautiful they are, skip these complex backgrounds and go with a plain colored or white background. Complex backgrounds confuse the eye and you want your visitors to concentrate fully on your text and images.
Always use contrasting colors for background and text. Black on white and white on black are basic, but work well. If you use dark text on a dark background or white text on a light background, it is difficult or next to impossible to read. If visitors can’t read your pages easily, you will lose them. It only takes one click to leave your site and if your visitors become annoyed or frustration, they will use the one click option.
Your web pages should also be readable for those visitors who can’t view graphics. Be sure to use a background and a text color that do not blend together. Bright and garish colors will also encourage people to leave your site.
Under construction
Since a good website is always under construction, these signs are redundant. Websites that have problems are easily spotted without these signs. Experienced web designers no longer use them. They signal an amateur. Never publish your website until all pages are complete.
Fonts
The text on your website gives your visitors information that they are seeking. Don’t get caught up in using a wide variety of fonts. Limit yourself to one or possibly two fonts. Choose something you like and stick with it throughout the site.
Be sure to keep your text large enough to read, but not so large that it’s difficult to read. Type for body text should always be set to normal. Headers should be on or two font sizes larger.
Never underline text, but rather highlight it by using bold, italics or a different color. Underlining the text on your page makes it more difficult to read and can confuse visitors because link text is underlined.
Do not use ALL CAPS. It gives visitors the impression that you are shouting at them and can be irritating and difficult to read.
Graphics
Graphics load slowly no matter how fast your visitor’s web connection is. Never use large graphics that take over ten seconds to load. If you do, chances are that a majority of your visitors will leave before the graphics load. If you feel you absolutely must have graphics, use only those that are necessary to your site and, if possible, use thumbnails that are fast loading.
Animations
Never include more than two animations. Moving images overpower the vision and distract visitors from your web content, which is the reason they’ve stopped by. Animations include blinking text, animated graphics and scrolling marquees.
Organization
Be absolutely positive that your pages are user friendly. Create a menu or index to assist visitors in navigating your website. Use a similar layout for all of your pages to make navigation easier.
Orphan pages
Some visitors may access your site from a search engine instead of your homepage. Place a “Home” link on every page to assure that your visitors can find your index or menu page for easy site navigation.
Unique content
The key to every good website is the content. Choose what you want to say, use only what is necessary and provide content that is unique. If you say the same thing as a hundred other websites, visitors will leave immediately. It’s imperative that you keep your content up to date and current.
Show authority
There are hundreds of websites that provide incorrect information, yet claim that the owner(s) is an expert. Always include your name and credentials and provide your source materials. Also include an e-mail address where visitors can send questions or compliment you on your site.
Keep your site updated
When visitors come to your site, they are seeking correct and current information. Update your website often and be sure all links are live. There’s nothing more irritating than clicking on a dead link or finding out the content was written five years before.
Links
Make sure that all links in documents are meaningful. The text of your links should be within the context of the rest of the text and flow well within it. Links should be able to stand alone when a document is printed. Use keywords for links. Never use, “click here,” to show your visitors where the link is. Highlight the keywords and visitors will know exactly where to find the links.
Follow the tips in this article to make your website user friendly. Remember to keep it as simple as possible while getting the message across. This will bring you many return visitors and a highly successful website.
