What are some of the top web design mistakes that people tend to make? Given the speed by which web design changes, having a fluid, mobile and tablet friendly website is more important than ever; this means being able to program a site to be as efficient as possible, while ensuring that it can work well on different devices. While getting advice from a digital agency in Bath can help you to find web design solutions that are right for you, it’s worth being aware of some mistakes that you should be avoiding for a site.
1 – Duplicate Content
Changes to search engine algorithms now mean that it’s really not a good idea to repeat the same content on your website; spinning and rewriting old content without updating it can cause your site to be penalised, so make sure that you regularly review and add new material to pages, while cutting out old content.
2 – Not Using Social Media
While it’s now rare that a company doesn’t have a social media presence tied to their website, it’s important to integrate different elements; this means having social toolbars to share content on different pages, as well as plenty of blog posts and competitions.
3 – No Plan for Mobile Viewing
You should have several plans in place for your site to be accessible to mobile devices; this means having either a mobile optimised version of a site, or one that uses responsive design to resize pages automatically depending on the device being used.
4 – Overloading Sites with Media Features
Don’t load up your site with media features and JavaScript, as this can cause slow loading times and distractions if a user’s browser doesn’t support plug-ins. HTML5 and CSS3 should now be able to handle most of your needs.
5 – Simple Navigation
At its best, navigation for a site should be as simple as possible; this means having drop down menus and scrolling pages, as well as a site map and internal links at the bottom of blog posts.
6 – No Calls to Action
If your site is set up with e-commerce options, make sure that there’s a clear interface through which someone can make purchases. Moreover, include plenty of calls to action like registration for a newsletter or an RSS feed so that potential customers can sign up for regular news and offers.
7 – Cluttering Pages
Too much written and visual content on a site can end up being cluttered, and particularly problematic for when a site loads on a mobile device; keep things minimalist, reduce text, and try to put images into sliding galleries.
8 – Not Testing
Before a site goes live, you should check it thoroughly for any mistakes, and make sure that you run it on a few devices to see how it looks on different sized screens.
9 – Not Including Contact Details
Put as many contact details as you can on a site so that users can get in touch with problems – - this should include Twitter accounts, customer email addresses, and live chats.
10 – Not Blogging
Regular blog posts should now be a key part of a website’s promotional appeal, and should include news and plenty of keywords that can help a search engine to identify the relevance of your site.
Author Bio
Tom Warrington is a blogger with interests in web design and mobile app development. For professional website consultation, he recommends using Deep Blue Sky, a digital agency in Bath. His other blogging interests include travel and football reporting.
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