You do not need to be a web design expert to be able to identify the five cardinal sins of web design. Anyone who owns a website and relies on that website to generate revenue should take the time to become familiar with the different design elements that can turn traffic away and cost you money.
Neon Or Bright Colors
In the 1990’s, it was popular to use loud background colors on a website to get attention. The bright colors definitely allowed websites to stand out, but the colors also proved to turn traffic away. Neon colors, or any bright colors, burn the eyes like a sandstorm and should be avoided at all costs. Subtle colors that help your text and images to stand out are much more effective at attracting and sustaining traffic.
Broken Links
Most professional web developers will tell you that you need to check all of the links on your entire website at least once a week. There are software programs you can use to check your links and find any broken ones that need repair. Broken links not only drive away traffic, they also cause your website to slide down in the search engine rankings. It may take a few minutes a week to check your links, but it is worth the time.
Bad Content
The content mills that made their living churning out keyword-stuffed content for years are not at all happy with Google because Google has demanded that Internet content be well-written and pertinent to the website it is on. In the old days, content was written by people who did not speak English as a first language and the results suffered. These days, your website content has to be the best possible content you can get if you want to attract traffic and get good search engine results. Be sure to take your time creating good content on your own or, better yet, hire a professional Internet marketing firm to get you good content.
Bad Navigation
Website designers have a rule that says that no content on a website should be more than three clicks away from the front page. If a customer has to click more than three links from the front page to find the content they want, then they will simply go to another website. This does not include the search function on your site as most customers would prefer to click a few links than use search.
A Complicated Website Address
You may think that you are saving money by using that free hosting service, but the truth is that the complicated website address is making it difficult for customers to find your website. A good website has a concise address that is easy to remember. These days, it is not nearly as important to have a .com as it used to be. But most savvy website owners know that it is always a good idea to buy as many extensions as possible for their website address to make it even easier for customers to find them. So when you create your simple website address, you should also look into buying as many extensions for it as possible. The extensions you should get include:
- .com
- .net
- .org
- .co
- .biz
A website that is properly designed and marketed can help you to meet your revenue goals. But when your website commits one of the five cardinal sins of web design, then you are making it much more difficult to grow your business.