20 common website mistakes

Posted on March 10, 2010 by Gary Chow | No Comments » | Trackback URL

Like many of you reading this post, I go to websites a lot. Most of the sites I visit are either good or very good. Some are outstanding: information well organized, navigation intuitive, design visually appealing, copy well written and meaningful, and images engaging and impressive.

On the other hand, I also stumble across sites that are plainly not up to scratch, where the user experience is pretty much the opposite of what I’ve mentioned above. Having a poor website is like going on a first date unkempt, unwashed and wearing scruffy shoes. Image is important to the wellbeing of a business. And for many firms, your website is the first chance – or perhaps only chance – people get to evaluate you.

Given the Internet has been around for a couple of decades, there is no excuse for a poor website. The following list can serve as a reminder of what to avoid when building or renovating your website.

1. Poor content architecture

Nothing can turn off a user more than a poorly structure website with information all over the place and therefore difficult to locate. Users want to find what they are looking for quickly and with no fuss. Two clicks are usually all that’s tolerated. They also don’t want to get lost.

Think of your local department store. When you enter, you have a good idea where to find items: cutlery in ‘kitchenware’, a necktie in ‘menswear’ and a pillowcase in ‘manchester’. And within those departments, you also know which sections to go to; for example, for your necktie you’d head for ‘accessories’ in menswear. The reason why items are easy to find is because they are organised into logical categories, and the pathways leading to the various departments are intuitive: homewares is next to kitchenware; socks next to shoes, etc.

The same approach should apply to your website. You need to organise your information in a way that makes sense to the user. The content categories and the hierarchy of those categories (parent page/sub-page/sub-sub page) should be logical and clear to the user. Media websites generally offer a good model to follow.

2. Confusing navigation

You know you’re wrestling with a bad navigation system when you have trouble getting around the site, frequently find you are ‘lost’, don’t have a good overview of what the site offers, and find you are taking too much time searching for the content you want. Websites with poor content architecture generally also have a messy navigation system.

A good navigation system on the other hand shows you at first glance what the site is about and what it can offer. Using clear labeling, you can quickly identify the hierarchy of content and can easily go from one page to the next using conventional navigation bars.

3. Insufficient and outdated content

A lot of small business websites suffer from this problem, which is understandable as many owners are simply too busy to focus on their site. Some site owners also feel they don’t have enough to say. But both issues are easy to overcome.

If you are too busy to write copy, hire a specialist copywriter or seek out copywriting advice sites, of which there are many on the web. This small investment will yield good returns in the long run. If you feel you don’t have much to say, think again. Almost any business can share information that customers would want to know. The more info you share, the more you project yourself as an authority in your area. Remember, keyword-rich content is vital for search engine optimisation. The more content you post, the better your chances of rising in the search rankings. The length of the copy on each page is also significant for SEO. As a rule of thumb, you should aim for at least 450 words per page.

Outdated copy is not unusual. I’ve seen sites with old contact details and bios of employees who have long left the firm. Check your webpages regularly to ensure what you are communicating is still current and accurate. If you run a blog, make sure it’s updated with new posts, at the very least, weekly. Again, if you don’t have time, hire a writer.

4. Over-design

Some sites look great: all singing, all dancing, full of bells and whistles and impressive ‘wow’ images. They use the latest design technology and methodology and occasionally even win industry awards. I don’t have an issue with this per se. But I do if the same site then falls down on the basics; that is, sound architecture, easy navigation and useful content. It’s vital to focus on usability. What your website does is generally more important than how it looks. .

5. Things that don’t work

A big sin this one. Examples include broken links, links that take you to the wrong page, images that don’t open and pages that don’t download properly. To the user, things that don’t work are clear signs of neglect and project a poor image of the company. To ensure your site is in good order, make sure you test all your links and pages regularly.

6. Too much choice

By this I mean webpages (especially home pages) that are overburdened with content. It’s one thing to enable your viewer to get a good overview of what you offer, but when you put too much information on one page and offer too many options, it can be confusing and overwhelming to a first-time visitor. It can also look like the proverbial ‘dog’s breakfast’.

7. Bloated hero image

People come to your site with a purpose in mind: to buy or seek information. They don’t come to view your images (unless you run a photo business). While images are important in establishing a brand and to provide visual appeal, its best to use them judiciously and not have them too large. Home pages dominated by a massive hero image running across the top thus relegating useful copy to below the ‘fold’ are a misuse of valuable space.

8. Unsuitable typeface and a too-small font size

Stick with typefaces proven to work well on the web. Fancy typefaces are harder to read and add no real value. I also can’t comprehend why some websites use such small point sizes for their fonts. Small print does not make a site elegant; it just makes it hard to read.

9. Videos that start the moment you download a page

Having a video on your site is a good way to convey information, and can help in search engine optimisation if the video is also put on video sharing sites like YouTube and Vimeo. But you should always give the viewer the option to view rather then have it play automatically. The same applies to music, which in any event probably shouldn’t be on your site at all unless music is integral to your business. In general, I’d say videos that demonstrate the benefits of a product are more interesting to the viewer than one showing a talking head waxing on about the firm. Unless your head honcho is a particularly charismatic person with an engaging presentation style, say, a Steve Jobs, than I’d forget about talking head videos.

10. Unnecessary introductory pages

You know the ones I mean: a page that requires you to listen to music or view a flashy animated image before clicking through to the main home page? I believe these introductory pages are called ‘splash pages’. Whatever they are called, I have yet to see one that adds any real value. Evidently, there are some valid technical reasons for these pages but as far as I’m concerned if the reason isn’t based on user-experience, then splash pages should be avoided.

11. Long text lines

Studies have shown that it’s easer to read text when the text column is narrow rather than wide. As a guide, the line length of your copy should be no more than about 70 – 80 characters. Most popular blogs follow this guideline to optimise readability. Notice how easier it is to read this layout with narrow column width compared to this one with a wider margin?

12. Garish colour schemes

Some sites give me a headache just by looking at them. Colours are loud, garish and mismatched. Yes, they leave a mark, but what kind of mark?

When you decide on a colour for your clothes or your car, you base your decision on the image you want to project. The same should apply to your website. Colours are important and have meaning. They say a lot about your business and about your brand. Whatever image you are seeking to create and whatever markets you are targeting, you should use colours that are suitable for that purpose and strategy.

Unsure about how to use colour? Take a tip from large companies; for example, check out the Apple site and see how they use colours to project an image of modernity and professionalism.

13.Webpages cluttered with advertisements

I can understand why a site would want to run adverts, but you can have too much of a good thing. Some sites have so many ads that they resemble the junk mail I get from my local supermarket. They distract rather than engage.

Engagement tools (e.g. calculators) should also be used smartly. If they are relevant to your business, that’s fine. If not, why add to your page?

14. Webpages that read ‘page under construction’ or ‘more content to come’

I often see webpages with these messages. If the site is brand new and the message appears on one or two pages, I can live with that. But if you find these messages throughout the site, then it begs the question: why launch the site prematurely? I’ve also noticed that webpages with a ‘page under construction’ message often have the same message when you return to the page months later. You start to wonder.

15. Amateurish photographs

Images you embed on your site and photos of your staff should always be of a high quality. By that I don’t just mean the photo should be focused, properly composed and have the correct exposure, but I also mean it should reflect a ‘professional’ style and a style that underpins your brand image. Using photos taken by staff members or scanned from the family photo album are a no-no. There are numerous photo sites that offer high quality stock images you can download and embed into your webpages, and these are often free or very cheap to buy (e.g. istockphoto)

16. Hard to find ‘contact us’ details

You can be excused for thinking that some businesses simply do not want you to contact them. Finding contact telephone numbers and email addresses on their websites are a challenge. Further, when you do find the ‘contact us’ page, all you get is the helpline, which is fine if you want help with your purchase or with a technical problem. What if you want to write to the CEO or to a divisional head because you want to express a concern or to offer feedback?

17. White text on dark background

It might be just me, but black text on a white (or light) background is the only way to go for readability. Sites that use white text on dark/black backgrounds or on patterned backgrounds do themselves no favours.

18. Inconsistency in ‘look and feel’

Some websites look like they’ve been built in piecemeal fashion by a committee. There is no consistency in ‘look and feel’. Not only is this annoying to the user but it also projects a bad image and dilutes your brand

A site should have a consistent look about it from page to page: same colour palette, same webpage format, same typeface, same placement of images, same icons, same navigation system, etc. In this way, you make your site easier to use and you reinforce your brand.

19. Poorly written copy with typos and grammatical errors

Again, this is often a time and resource issue and easy to fix. The key is to proofread before publishing. Take your time and get another person to read what you have written. Seek an expert if you need to.

As for writing style, write in plain English. Write to your target audience, and avoid excessive use of jargon, buzzwords and corporatespeak. Break up long copy into digestible chunks, signposting each section with engaging headings. Explain yourself clearly and use meaningful words not vogue terms like ‘cutting edge’ or ‘best of breed’. Don’t be afraid to ‘sell’ your business using persuasive and convincing language backed up with testimonials.

20. Unconventional design elements

Overtime, design conventions have been developed for websites and users have become accustomed to them. For example when you see a shopping cart icon, you know that will lead you to the purchasing page.

On most webpages, you will typically find the company logo in the top left corner, and a global navigation bar on the top of the page or in the left margin. Common labels include ‘about us’ and ‘our services’. Stick to these conventions. There’s not a lot to be gained from using original icons, cutesy labels, ‘creative’ navigation bars or placing objects in unusual locations.