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How to ruin your website

profile picture Posted by Webline ( profile )
Date/time: Sunday, Jan 3, 2010

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The art of web design has come a long way in the last few years. From basic text pages to dynamic community sites to blogs to the "Web 2.0" wave, web site creation and technology has grown by leaps and bounds. So, in an era of having so many things you can do, perhaps it's a good idea to remember the things you shouldn't do.

On any website.

Ever.

If you're new to web design, I hope this list helps you avoid mistakes and start with a great, effective website.

1) Poor spelling. No matter what your websites message is, it won't be effective if you have pages full of typos. In fact, it's a pretty good way to show how uncaring you are about what you present to the world. Use a spell checker, have someone else read your copy, do whatever it takes to clean it up and sound professional.

2) Poor navigation. One of the most frustrating things you can do to your visitors is have a bad menu/navigation system. If it isn't consistent from page to page, easy to find, or easy to understand, your visitors will get tired of getting lost and end up leaving.

3) Ancient animation. Remember years ago when everyone had those animated mailboxes on their site? And scrolling/blinking/flashing text messages? Or pages covered with "cute" little animated creatures, sayings, logos, and anything else you can think of? It was bad then, and its still bad today. Don't look like an amateur, even if you are.

4) Slow page load time. It can be hard enough to get visitors to your site, so don't create a situation where, once they get to it, they have to wait endlessly for it to load into their browser. People often have little patience on the internet, wanting things now, not when your site decides to do its thing.

5) No Contact Us page. If the only way people have to contact you is through an old-fashioned "mailto" link, don't expect a lot of email. It is much easier for your user to be able to use a page with a nice contact form, rather than needing to load up their email client and jump through hoops just to get a message off to you. Plus, your form can have fields to garnish additional information from your users.

6) Lack of good, fresh content. Keep your sites information updated on a regular basis. If the content is ancient history, there's a good chance your sites traffic will be also.

7) Trinkets, gadgets & gizmos. There are all sorts of ways to spice up and add things to your site, from Web 2.0 buttons to advertising to flash to inserting video to automated music to, well, you get the idea. The best rule of thumb is, if it doesn't actually do something beneficial for your site visitor, don't do it.

8) Overcrowding your content. Some sites are so intent on cramming as much information into their pages as possible that it becomes impossible for a visitor to determine what to do or where to go. Information overload is not a good thing. Keep a fair amount of white space, focus on your core message, and lead your visitors through your site.

9) Head scratching design. I can't tell you how many sites I've seen that, when viewing them for the first time, I have no clue what the purpose of the site is, what it does, how to navigate it, or what I should even think of doing. Many designers think that being "revolutionary", "different" and "creative" make them masters of design, but in the end, if your visitors are left clueless, your "outside the box" design is as well.

10) Un-usability. In essence, usability can be based on how well your visitors interact with your site, and how well it meets their needs. Your end goal is to have a site that is hassle free and creates an enjoyable experience. Don't be afraid to get opinions from others on your sites design and functionality, as that is the best way to improve it and make it successful for you and your visitors.

These are just some of the components of creating a hassle filled, frustrating, overwhelming, terrible, and pretty much flat-out bad website. And always remember two things above all when building your site;

If one man's trash is another man's treasure, then one man's treasure can be another man's trash.

Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.


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