5 Common Web Design Mistakes and How to Fix Them

It may be difficult to believe, but more than half of the small businesses operating in the United States don’t have a website. While that might be shocking, what’s even more surprising is that some existing websites work against the businesses they’re intended to promote. This often happens when web designers make mistakes which end up confusing or frustrating visitors. Or, even worse, web designers make errors which eat away at the trust users once had in a brand. 

Whether you want to generate leads, you operate an e-commerce store or you simply want to establish your brand’s name, it’s critical for your business to have a website. More accurately, it’s vital for your business to have a website that isn’t riddled with mistakes that might deter visitors from returning to your site in the future.

Keep reading to learn about some of the most common web design mistakes and how you can fix them if they’re apparent on your website.

Prolonged Load Times

If you were told you had to get something done in a blink of an eye, how would you respond? No matter how you would react to that time sensitive imperative, that’s what users expect when they visit your website – they expect your pages to load is 250 milliseconds or less. If they don’t, it’s likely your visitors will move onto a competitor’s website.

In order to meet your visitors’ expectations, you need to remove anything that negatively influences your page load times. Some of the things you should consider removing include overly complex graphics and videos that play automatically, regardless of whether a user wants to see them.

Cluttered, Unorganized Pages

If your pages are cluttered with too many graphics or an abundance of text, it can affect your credibility. If you have block text on your pages, break it up so that it’s scannable using simple graphics, bullets and headings. Design each page so the information that people are looking for is evident and simple to find.

Provide information in an organized format without making your page layouts unnecessarily complex. Make sure your website is easy to navigate in an intuitive, user-friendly manner that naturally takes people from point A to point B, etc.

Trendy Designs

While it’s important for web designers to be aware of the latest design trends, it doesn’t mean every trend has to be used in your website design. You should only incorporate a trend into your website’s design if it adds lasting value and improves the experience users will have when they visit your site.

Stale or Irrelevant Content

Your website should only have content that’s directly relevant to the lives of your visitors. This means you should add fresh content to your website and your other digital platforms regularly. If you don’t engage your visitors on Twitter and you don’t add new photos on Instagram often, remove the feeds from your website. Your website should only feature outlets that you update with fresh content frequently.

Hidden Contact Information

One of the best ways you can establish trust with your visitors is to provide contact information that’s clearly visible on every one of your web pages. While you may want to have a contact form, it’s not enough. Visitors want the option to call your business or send you an email in the moment. Display your phone number and email address in a prominent, consistent location on each of your website’s pages.

If you’re concerned that your website is the victim of design mistakes and don’t know how to identify or fix them, the web designers at NW Media Collective, Inc. can help. Learn about the services our talented web designers provide now.