9 Things You’re Doing Wrong With Your Web Design

An attractive, compelling, and unique website has already become an important element when it comes to your business’s success. This is because having a poorly designed website may be the reason why your business is going to lose customers, which, in turn, would decrease your chances of earning money.

 
However, the idea of having a well-functioning website is still not the main concern for most online entrepreneurs. For one, they believe using templates or hiring inexperienced web designers can allow them to save money. But this only brings the opposite effect since these will potentially bring zero return on investment (ROI). Additionally, other business people don’t understand the importance of a website, rather, a well-designed website in the first place. Due to this, they believe their site’s design won’t truly affect the success of their business.

 
If you want to avoid designing a website that won’t yield beneficial returns for your business, continue reading this article as it’ll walk you through some web design mistakes you should avoid.

Avoid These Things In Your Web Design

Some people–mostly web designers–consider web design as a form of art. This is because, like art, a great website design provides potential viewers a great experience. To achieve this, it’s important to note that an excellent design revolves around form and function. With this combination, you’ll certainly have a website that’s usable, navigable, enjoyable, and interesting.

 
However, combining form and function is easier said than done. But as a start, you can try avoiding certain elements so you’ll be able to have a website that’s well-functioning. Without further ado, here are the things you’re doing with your web design that you should avoid or manage if you’ve already implemented some of these in your current web design:

1. Using Bad Photos

Given that a website serves as a way for potential clients to be introduced to your business, it must deliver a good and lasting appeal. What better way to do that than to achieve a good first impression using high-quality photos? Thus, as much as possible, try to refrain from having poor-quality images on your website, especially those that are blurry or with low pixels.

 
Additionally, make sure the photos on your website are plagiarism-free. You surely wouldn’t want to get into legal trouble just because you’re using someone else’s photo as this can only result in additional expenses. That’s why it’s advisable to take high-quality photos of the products or services you’re offering. If this isn’t possible, then you can opt for stock images. Do note, however, that it’s best to pay for the photo so you won’t face any legal consequences.

2. Poor Navigation

This aspect of design you should avoid is more on the process of developing your website. Still, it’s important to point this out since having poor navigation is one of the most common mistakes developers make.

 
Your site mustn’t have poor navigation since it can frustrate potential clients and visitors as they’ll get lost in your digital space, which will result in them not considering your business and opt for your competitor’s site.

That being said, a labyrinth of a website design is unacceptable in any competitive industry. As a solution, try adding a visible navigation bar to your website and ensure it can be easily seen. Furthermore, if possible, make your website as straightforward and user-friendly as it can be. Having this type of website is said to generate much more traffic, which means a high potential for a good ROI since customers would love to transact business with you.

 
Also, consider adding a sitemap. This allows users the convenience of jumping on any of your website’s pages.

3. Confusing Design

Note that poor navigation can also be the cause of a confusing design. But most of the time, the confusion happens due to having plenty of images, typefaces, themes, and color palettes that don’t relate to each other.

 
Make sure to avoid these reasons why you have a confusing website design:

• Don’t have a brand image yet
• Indecisive on the design templates to use
• Conveying too many ideas at once
• Viewing your website as an individual component rather than as a whole

With this said, only choose one logo, theme, and typeface. Then, ensure the chosen elements are consistent all across your website. If you lack design experience, you might struggle to make informed decisions. It's common knowledge that investing in web design services will bring along a group of experts who are well-versed in the latest industry standards. For example, web designers in Toronto can help you build a website from the ground up.

4. Does Not Have A Good Call-To-Action (CTA)

A CTA is a part of the website encouraging visitors and clients to do something. This is important since it helps your business convert an ordinary visitor into a lead.

 
By a ‘good’ CTA, this means it shouldn’t annoy visitors; it shouldn’t be too big or too long that the visitor will only see your CTA and not the content they want to see. This means you don’t necessarily need to get creative with your wording. Hence, ensure your CTA is direct to the point and guides customers on what their next course of action should be.

Here are some good CTAs you can consider:

• Get Started
• Sign Me Up Now
• Contact Us
• Buy Now
• Add to Cart

5. Does Not Properly Utilize The Importance of Content

Content plays an important role in both your website and digital marketing campaign. This is because it’s your content that tells readers or potential leads about the nature of your business as well as the details of the products or services you’re offering. This being said, make sure to consider the typeface you choose. Typeface refers to how you convey your brand through font style and size. Choose an appealing font style and a legible font size.

 
Moreover, don’t forget the importance of white space as it’ll make huge chunks of paragraphs into something less intimidating. You can also decide to break texts up and even use some visual aid as a substitute for concepts, if possible. Lastly, don’t forget to always make your content up-to-date. This way, visitors will know your business is still operating.

 

6. Having A Website Without Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Even if you have a website that’ll make a good first impression as well as a web design that’s easy to navigate, it still won’t bring benefits to your business if you haven’t incorporated the latest SEO techniques and strategies in your web design.

 
SEO is an important factor in your website’s success. If you’re not knowledgeable in this area, fortunately, there are plenty of SEO experts who are always willing to help you out. And, as mentioned above, hiring their services is highly beneficial for you in the long run as it’ll make your website, as well as your business, stand out from the competition.

 

7. Failing To Add A Search Box

A search box may be optional for a regular page or blog. However, if you’re a rising eCommerce website, then a search box is a must. This is because it’ll provide users the convenience since they can simply search for what they need or want from your business.

 
Furthermore, a search box will also be beneficial for you. For instance, you’ll no longer need to go on each landing page and check for any irrelevant or outdated information. You can simply key in your desired information in the search box, and then you’ll get the relevant results within seconds.

8. Misplaced Ads

Even though most users don’t like looking at ads, it’s considered a necessary evil for a website owner like you since ads are your main source of income. However, just because ads bring in profit doesn’t mean you should randomly place them on your web pages. This will frustrate your visitors, prompting them to lose interest in your website.

 
As a tip, try to look at your ads from the user’s perspective. If they bother you, then it’ll surely do the same for your visitors. Also, pay close attention to pop-ups. This means they should be easy to close (the X mark should be highlighted) and won’t take up the whole screen.

 

9. Too Promotional

Just because you’re a business entity doesn’t mean your website should only talk about the products or services you’re offering. Do note that most web users visit various web pages to get solutions. By only talking about your product, potential customers may shun it since it won’t answer their problems.
This means if you’re not focusing on the needs of potential customers, you’ll end up losing profit. With this, it’s important to keep in mind that a website should be customer-centric. Thus, try to answer their problems first, then slowly introduce your product as a solution in your content.

 

Final Words

In this competitive era, a website is an essential investment since it’ll allow you to stand out from the competition. Still, simply having a website won’t give you the expected benefits. In fact, having a poorly designed one can only cost you money in the long run.

 
Thus, when designing a website, make sure you’ve considered the things above. Avoiding these common mistakes is already the first step toward generating more traffic, which translates to more customers and profit.