Web Site Design Mistakes

Some wise human once said "Learn from the mistakes of others. There isn't nearly enough time to make them all yourself." Hence this article. Here are five of the most annoying and common web design mistakes.

1. Slow download time - Don't be that site that is filled with the coolest gizmos in the world. You know, animation, music and other "cool" things. Why? Because nobody is going to go to it because it takes too long to download. A nice clean site that downloads quickly will get you much further than a site with all the fixings that takes forever to download.

2. Unreadable text - If a user has to struggle to read the text on your web site, chances are they won't. Here are some common readability issues:

A. Low contrast text and background - Don't use light colored text on a light background. Also, don't use dark text on a dark background. Text is most easily read with extreme contrasts between the background and text. Black on white is about as good as it gets for readability. Red on black is pretty bad. Yellow on white isn't so hot either.

B. Text on a busy background - Text is most easily read on solid color background. Putting text on textured backgrounds can make it much harder to read.

C. Small Text - Text that is really tiny may look cool, but is hard to read. If you must use small text, make sure changing the text size in a browser will change the size of your text. Using style sheets can some times over-ride a browser's ability to increase text size.

3. Unpleasant designs - Designs that use too many colors, colors that clash, or a messy layout, are just plain hard to look at. A site should be pleasant to look at, not a chore.

4. Long pages - Long pages are a problem because your force people to sift through piles of information to get what they want. Pages that focus on just a few topics with links to related topics on other pages are much better. This approach allows the reader to isolate the specific subject they are interested in.

5. Poor Navigation - It is extremely important that a user be able to access all pages of your site from every page. Users will often enter your site from a search engine listing with a link other than your home page. You do not want your visitors at a dead-end with no way to access the rest of your site. You will have wasted the traffic and given the prospect a bad impression of your business.

As you surf the web, you should keep a list of annoying things you find on other sites. Every so often, check your site to see if you have the same problems. Regardless, if you avoid the common web design mistakes listed above, you will stand a better chance of running a successful web site.

Halstatt Pires is with http://www.marketingtitan.com - an Internet marketing and advertising company comprised of a search engine optimization specialist providing meta tag optimization services and Internet marketing consultant providing internet marketing solutions through integrated design and programming services.

---

How To Create A Stunning Drop Capital Effect On Your Web Pages

Drop Capitals are frequently used in many newspapers, books and... Read More

How to Create A Homepage That Works

Want to know what the worst thing to say on... Read More

How Do We Know When Its Time To Redesign Our Web Site?

A question we frequently get asked is, "how do we... Read More

Tried and Tested Tips to Improve Your Website - Part 1

1. DO NOT use excessive graphics or banner images on... Read More

Attention Grabbing Web Design Will Kill Your Sale!

In the of-line marketing world it is all about trying... Read More

Can Your Visitors Contact You From Your Website

Argh, where's the contact button?! Believe it or not, some... Read More

What Happened to My Website when I Deleted the Home Page by Mistake?

There is a widespread confusion among lots of new website... Read More

Website Design: 10 Web Site Design Pitfalls To Avoid

If you've a website that is not generating a lot... Read More

Dont Lose The Sale In The Internets Last Three Feet

In retailing there is a saying that sales are made... Read More

Why Choose A Professional Web Designer?

It seems that almost every Tom Dick and Harry do... Read More

Colorblind People, Can They Really Read Your Web Site?

I once created a notepad-like editor. It is possible with... Read More

E-covers for Your Niche Market

When creating an e-cover the what's the first thought that... Read More

Color and Web Design

Color is one of the most important but least understood... Read More

How to Create an Enjoyable Web Page Design

Novice and professional designers alike ? you may probably be... Read More

Power of Squeeze Pages for Realtors

Squeeze pages are a very hot topic in the internet... Read More

How to Design a Search Engine Friendly Web Site

Many web site designers don't design their sites for the... Read More

Click Here

See, works every time. Seriously now, for some reason people... Read More

8 Tips for Designing a Great Website

Square buttons, round buttons, flashy buttons ? will they match... Read More

Elements of Graphic Design for Your Website

We've all seen them. Poorly designed web sites that make... Read More

Web Design for Ecommerce

Your website is your tool for showing the online community... Read More

How to Create a Favicon for Your Web Site

One of the simplest things you can do to give... Read More

14 Ways to Add Content to Your Web Site - Part 1

When I surf the Net, I often see web sites... Read More

How Important is Content to a Successful Website

Content is the most important part of any website.The Internet... Read More

Turn Harmful 404 Error Pages Into Helpful 301 Redirects

It's a fact, Page Not Found, known as a 404... Read More

Do You Want To Save Time With Your Web Design?

It starts off simply; a few HTML pages, a few... Read More

What Your Website REALLY Says About You And Why It Matters

Everything you say and do says something about you. This... Read More

The Best Simple Software For The Busy Webmaster

Here are a few programs I can't do without. They're... Read More

Title Tags - How to Make Them More Effective

The title tags of your web pages are more important... Read More

Affordable Web Design In Birmingham

If you have a business, big or small you may... Read More

How To Design A Web Site

I'm not a professional web site designer and openly admit... Read More

Is Your Website?s Copy Up to the Mark?

The Internet is a relatively new medium. What works for... Read More

Maximising Web Site Viewability - Browsers

With so many different configurations internet users have their computers... Read More

Cheap Web Design In London

Due to the large number of people offering web design... Read More