The success of your online business is strongly tied to the quality of your website in terms of web design and development. The importance of a user-friendly website design cannot be over-emphasized. You cannot rake in profits from your online business if you do not focus on exceptional website design and usability.
Over the years, the rules of website design and development have changed significantly. Websites that do not conform to the evolving trends in website design and development will find it difficult to make customers stay for long, nevermind purchase a product or service.
Here we will reveal the 7 deadly web design sins that you cannot afford to commit if you want to succeed in the online business world.
1. Design that is Difficult to Navigate
One the most deadly web design sins include creating a website that is difficult for users to navigate. The point is that you must keep the web design layout simple and easy for users to navigate. You should not make it hard for the customers to get the required information about a product or services.
When designing a site, it’s important to think like a customer. Designing a site from your target customers’ perspective will help you avoid potential pitfalls. Make sure that your website is easy to navigate with a neat and organized layout, clear call to action, and visible contact information. This will ensure that your visitors do not abandon your site upon entering from a Google search or other source. There are lots of plugins on the market to make your website navigation aesthetically pleasing. You could also hire a web design firm to make your work easier.
2. Fonts that are Hard to Read
A serious web design mistake is using fonts that are hard to read. In the past, the standard font size for websites was 12px. People had smaller monitors back then, so it was not a problem. But with time, people started using bigger size monitors on which 12px fonts seemed too small.
Most people nowadays use monitors that are above 24″ in size. In order to increase readability of your website, you must opt for a greater font size. This will ensure the best user experience while visiting the site. Below are some recommended font sizes that you should use for your website.
· Header: 35px
· Footer: 15px
· Introductory text: 26px
· Headline [H1]: 41px
· Headline [H2]: 36px
· Body: 18px
Also note that different font types have different sizes. For instance, an 18px Sans Serif font will look smaller or larger as compared to another font type of the same size. You need to keep this in mind when selecting a font type for your website.
3. Not Optimizing the Website for Mobile
Another grave mistake that you should avoid when designing a website is not optimizing the website for mobile. The fact is, mobile internet usage has skyrocketed in the past four years. The latest statistics on mobile usage reveal that 51% of Adult Americans used their smartphones to access the internet. This has not gone unnoticed by the search engine giant, Google.
Due to the growing popularity of using mobile devices to access the internet, Google rolled out a new update in April last year dubbed ‘Mobilegeddon’. The latest algorithm update encourages website owners to optimize their website for mobile display, which will bring them to the top of the search engine rankings. So, if you want to cash in on your online business, you must avoid the sin of not taking into consideration mobile users when designing your website.
4. Trying to Force Content into Design
The importance of an exceptional web design cannot be denied. But choosing a design template first and then trying to fit the content into that is a deadly web design sin. The main reason for this is because most people visit your website to gain information. A good web design is important, but content is king. Therefore, you must design your website based on your content, not the other way around.
5. Using Low Contrast Fonts
Using low contrast fonts is another deadly web design sin. By low contrast, we mean using a light font with a light color background or a dark font with a dark color background. This makes the print hard to read for online visitors. In order to improve readability of the website, you must focus on using high contrast fonts. Use a bright color font if the background image is dark, and a dark color font if the background image is light for optimum readability of the website.
6. Not Optimizing the Website for Speed
Loading a website with too many graphics slows down the webpage. Page speed, which refers to the time it takes to open the page, has a great impact on both online user experience and search engine ranking. So, if you want to win the heart of both your customers and the search engines, you must avoid overloading your site with too many graphics that take too much time to load on the screen.
7. Not Showcasing the Product or Service
Customers visit your website to buy a product or service. Engaging web content is important. In fact, it will help bring additional people to your site. But you must not put content before your product or services.
The web design should focus on highlighting the product or services offered on the site. Additional relevant and related content should appear if the user clicks on “read more” or goes to the blog section of the website. Remember your product or service is the main attraction of your website, and you must treat it as such if you want to create the best impression on customers.
