Most business-owners understand that they can’t afford to have bad website design. Your website is essentially your calling card, and it tells consumers a lot about what you have to offer. That’s why custom web development services have become so popular. It’s simply not enough to have a website; you need one that’s unique to your organization and sets you apart from everyone else.
However, there’s a flip side to that. If you try too hard to be different or you forget about the elements of website design that really matter, you could be setting yourself up for failure. When you hire a company for your custom web development services, you need to make sure they have an innate understanding of which components can help and which ones can hinder. Because it can be difficult to recognize these elements yourself, we’ve highlighted three of the worst web design fails that can actually kill your traffic and ultimately hurt your business.
- Slow load time
All of the pages on your website need to load quickly and completely. Simply put, visitors aren’t going to wait around for your site. In fact, 40% of people will abandon a web page if it takes more than three seconds to load! Not only will you cause potential customers to abandon ship, but Google may even take steps to make sure other ones can’t find you. Google has been known to penalize sites with slow loading speeds, which means your business won’t show up in relevant searches. Make sure whatever web design services you use understand the importance of speedy load times.
- Slow load time
- Lack of mobile optimization
These days, most people are conducting web searches from their phones. It’s also becoming more popular to actually make purchases from mobile devices than from laptops or personal computers. If you want to reach these customers, your website needs to be optimized for mobile users. A website that isn’t optimized (i.e., a site that is difficult to navigate or even read using a phone) will alienate potential customers. In addition, Google can also penalize you for not being mobile-optimized. Since much of your traffic should come from users with smartphones and tablets, you can’t take that risk.
- Lack of mobile optimization
- Flair over function
Of course, you want a website that looks amazing. But don’t forget that it also needs to serve a purpose. When you forgo substance for style, you’re forgetting that customers are coming to your website to seek information. Your site should be aesthetically pleasing, but it shouldn’t be entirely about the look. Above all else, it needs to be helpful. If it’s not, your traffic will die off. You need to provide visitors with something other than a cool-looking page. When sites are difficult to navigate or don’t actually provide what they need, they’re going to look elsewhere.
Looking for custom web development services to take your business to the next level? Your Design Online has got your back. For more information, get in touch with us today.
