7 Common Website Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
What’s in this article
This article will explore 7 of the most common website mistakes businesses make, and how you can avoid them to help your business grow and succeed online.
Your website is not just your online address. It’s often the first impression potential customers have of your business. Yet, many businesses unknowingly fall into common website mistakes that drive users away and impact their bottom line.
Here are the seven biggest website design mistakes to avoid, along with actionable solutions to refresh or rebuild your site and maximise its impact.
1. Poor Mobile Optimisation
Mobile devices are the primary means of internet access for a great portion of the population in Australia, and the statistics from DataReportal highlight the importance of mobile responsiveness even more. According to the report, there were 25.21 million internet users in Australia in January 2024, and a substantial number accessed the internet via mobile devices.
What Is Mobile Responsiveness?
A responsive website adjusts automatically to different screen sizes to ensure seamless usability across devices. On the other hand, a site that is not mobile-friendly can lead to navigation difficulties and user frustration, which increase bounce rates. In addition, search engines like Google prioritise mobile-friendly websites in their rankings, which also helps with SEO.
What Can You Do?
Test your website regularly on mobile phones and tablets to identify areas for improvement. These may include resizing images, enhancing button accessibility, or simplifying navigation.
2. Weak Visual Design
A weak design for your website can damage your credibility in an instant. Poor-quality images, inconsistent colours, and chaotic layouts are just some of the common mistakes in website design that can make your site look unprofessional.
Sometimes, design elements are too flashy. They compete with the content and distract visitors from the message you want to convey.
What Can You Do?
For a polished look, invest in high-quality images that represent your brand. These could include professional product photos, team images, or custom illustrations.
Stick to a cohesive colour palette and typography across all pages for consistency. Remember, simplicity often wins. Your design choices should enhance the user experience, not complicate it.
3. Confusing Navigation and Layout
Complex navigation menus or cluttered layouts can confuse visitors and result in a terrible user experience, making it one of the biggest website design mistakes to avoid. When visitors land on your site, they should be able to find what they’re looking for within seconds. Otherwise, they will most likely leave, increasing your bounce rate.
What Is Bounce Rate?
Bounce rate is the percentage of people who visit your site but leave without exploring further. No clicks, no scrolling—just a quick exit.
A high bounce rate can be a sign that something’s off. It could be slow loading times, confusing design, or content that doesn’t match what visitors were expecting. So, keeping an eye on this metric helps you spot areas where your site could be more engaging.
What Can You Do?
Simplify navigation by organising your menus logically and labelling them clearly. Including a search bar can help users locate specific content quickly. Ensure you use a clean, well-structured layout so that visitors can access important information without unnecessary clicks. Finally, group related pages together and use descriptive headings.
Need help with your website?
At Heart Digital, our team have extensive experience designing, building and optimising websites to help local business grow and succeed online. Get in touch to discuss how we can help you.
4. Poor Content Quality and Strategy
Your content is the cornerstone of your website. It’s what communicates your value to potential customers, yet a poor content strategy is one of the most common website mistakes.
If your website is guilty of having poor content, such as low-quality or irrelevant content, users are likely to leave and turn to competitors instead. The same is true for overly complex content. Long blocks of text, excessive jargon, and unclear messaging often leave visitors confused about what your business offers.
What Can You Do?
Focus on creating concise content that engages your audience. To do this, be sure to identify the problems your target market faces and explain how your products or services solve them.
To improve content structure, use headings and bullet points to break up content. Keep paragraphs short to make information more digestible.
5. Ignoring SEO and Analytics
A beautiful website won’t achieve much if no one can find it. This is why search engine optimisation (SEO) is essential for driving visibility and traffic.
Ignoring SEO best practices, such as using the right keywords, having proper meta descriptions, and ensuring fast loading times, can leave your site buried in search results. Additionally, failing to track website analytics means you miss out on valuable insights into your audience’s behaviour and preferences.
What Can You Do?
To address this, we’ll give you a glimpse of what we do in our SEO services. First, we research relevant keywords and identify the best keywords in terms of search intent among many factors. Then, we integrate them naturally into headings, text, and metadata.
We also optimise images and code to ensure your site loads quickly. You should also leverage analytics tools to track user activity and identify areas where visitors drop off so that you have a clear basis for refining your website further.
6. Lack of Regular Updates and Maintenance
An outdated website can make your business seem stagnant. This lack of freshness not only deters users but also negatively impacts your SEO performance. For instance, Google uses a system called Query Deserves Freshness, which prioritises pages with the most recent and relevant content for time-sensitive queries to ensure users receive up-to-date information.
The same principle applies to website design and features. With new technology emerging constantly, failing to adopt innovations that enhance user experience can make you fall behind competitors and miss out on valuable organic traffic.
What Can You Do?
You can start by performing regular maintenance checks to fix broken links, test page speeds, and ensure all features work smoothly. Next, commit to regular updates to keep your website functional. Be sure to replace old images, update product descriptions, and publish new blog posts.
7. Credibility and Accessibility Issues
Accessibility is a fundamental aspect of good website design, yet it’s often overlooked. Websites that are difficult to navigate for users with disabilities, such as those who rely on screen readers or keyboard navigation, exclude a significant audience. At the same time, using generic stock photos or outdated design elements can erode trust.
What Can You Do?
To make your site inclusive, follow accessibility guidelines:
- Provide alt text for images
- Ensure sufficient contrast between text and background
- Enable keyboard navigation
Additionally, use authentic images to build trust and credibility.
Unleash Your Website's Potential
A great website isn’t just visually appealing. It’s functional, easy to navigate, and tailored to your audience’s needs.
If you’re looking to refresh or rebuild your website, now’s the time to take action. Invest in website design and development, and optimise for both users and search engines to turn your website into a powerful platform for your business. Address these common website mistakes, and watch your website evolve into an asset that works for you 24/7.
Articles
Related Articles
We’re passionate about our work and the industry in which we work. We therefore regularly public
digital marketing updates for the benefits of our clients and the broader public.
