The Most Common Web Design Mistakes That People Are Still Making

Design is largely subjective, and we all have different opinions about what looks good. Even so, some rules of good design and layout are close to universal, and breaking them can leave a site universally unpopular. If your website exists to earn your business money, that is the wrong approach, whether or not you personally like the look of it.

Plenty of mistakes show up again and again when browsing the web, and they cost businesses real money. Here are some of the most common ones, and how to avoid them in your own web design.

Ugly or default fonts weaken your credibility

We have covered typography on this blog before, but people still make mistakes in this area. If you missed those posts, they are worth a read.

Typography is a big part of design. It affects the feel and tone of your site and also its legibility and readability. If your font is just the default that came with your WordPress theme, your site will not look custom-built or professional, and it may be hard to read. Choose one or two fonts, use a comfortable size for body text and make sure there is enough contrast between the text and the background.

A page with no sense of flow loses visitors

When people land on a page, they should know right away where to look, and their eyes should move naturally through the content. All the elements on the page should agree on where the content starts, what the focal point is and which direction to read. Use size, spacing and contrast to create a clear order: a strong headline, a short supporting message and one obvious next step.

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Too much clutter overwhelms visitors

Minimalism done well is beautiful. It is efficient, it directs attention and it avoids overwhelming visitors. If your site is a mess of items clamoring for attention, it is time to rethink. Give each page one main job and remove anything that does not support it.

Too much ambition gets in the way of usability

A website with too many animations, an unusual navigation and an odd color scheme might earn an A+ in a design class, but it will not do its job in the real world. Good design should be subtle and serve a purpose. It should not draw attention to itself at the expense of usability.

A site that looks like every other site is forgettable

Perhaps the biggest mistake is that a huge number of websites look boring, meaning they look like every other website and have nothing to set them apart. Visitors arrive from Google, have no way of knowing what makes you different and leave. To them, it is just another run-of-the-mill site.

You do not need a masterpiece, but if nothing about your site is unique or interesting, you are not fulfilling its potential and nobody will remember you. Original photography of your real team and work, a clear brand voice and a distinctive look all help.

Ignoring mobile, speed and accessibility

Three more mistakes are common today. First, a site that is hard to use on a phone, with tiny text and buttons, drives away the majority of visitors. Second, slow pages, often caused by oversized images, cost you people before they ever see your message. Third, ignoring accessibility, such as low-contrast text, missing image descriptions and menus that cannot be used with a keyboard, shuts out potential customers and can create legal risk. Test your site on a real phone, check its speed and run an accessibility checker.

Get a design that works as hard as you do

If you want web design that works for you and stays unique but have no idea how to achieve it, work with a website design specialist today. Our web design team builds custom, mobile-friendly sites that are made to convert visitors into customers.