5 Scary Website Design Mistakes to Avoid When Putting A New Website Live
Halloween is all about scares, but your website shouldn’t be one of them! A well-designed website is crucial for keeping users engaged, building trust, and converting visitors into customers. However, some frightening design mistakes can turn your website into a digital haunted house, scaring away potential visitors and making it difficult to achieve your online goals.
In the spooky spirit of Halloween, let’s explore five terrifying website design mistakes that can haunt your site and how to avoid them:
1. Creepy Load Times
Why It’s Scary: Slow-loading websites are the stuff of nightmares. Users expect pages to load in a matter of seconds. If they have to wait, they might disappear. A delay of just a few seconds can lead to high bounce rates and lost conversions.
How to Avoid It:
- Optimise images: Compress images without sacrificing quality.
- Use lazy loading: Load only what’s visible to the user.
- Minimise plugins and scripts: Reduce unnecessary plugins and large scripts that slow your site.
2. Spooky Navigation
Why It’s Scary: A website that’s difficult to navigate can feel like being lost in a dark forest. Confusing layouts, hidden menus, or too many options can frustrate users, making them flee in fear before they find what they’re looking for.
How to Avoid It:
- Create a clear and simple menu: Limit menu options to essential pages.
- Use breadcrumbs: Help users keep track of where they are on your site.
- Implement a search bar: Especially important for content-heavy sites, a search bar makes it easy for users to find information quickly.
3. Monster Fonts and Colors
Why It’s Scary: Bad font choices or a clash of colours can make your site difficult to read and navigate. Fonts that are too small, difficult to read, or overwhelming colour schemes can strain the eyes and make your content seem unprofessional.
How to Avoid It:
- Choose legible fonts: Stick to fonts that are clean and easy to read, especially for body text. Avoid overly decorative or hard-to-read fonts.
- Use contrasting colours: Ensure that your text and background colours contrast well for better readability. Avoid using too many colours that can overwhelm the user.
4. Ghostly 404 Errors
Why It’s Scary: Nothing is more frustrating for users than stumbling upon a 404 error page. When they click on a link and end up on a dead page it leaves users stranded and unsure of where to go next.
How to Avoid It:
- Regularly check links: Use tools like Google Search Console to scan for broken links and 404 errors.
- Create a useful 404 page: If users do land on one, make it engaging by offering navigation options or a search bar to help them find what they need.
5. Terrifying Pop-Ups
Why It’s Scary: While pop-ups can be a useful marketing tool, they can also become the boogeyman of the internet when overused or poorly timed. Constant interruptions with aggressive pop-ups can annoy visitors and lead to a quick exit from your site.
How to Avoid It:
- Be strategic with pop-ups: Don’t overwhelm users with too many. Only display them after the user has spent time on your site.
- Optimize for mobile: Make sure your pop-ups don’t completely block the screen on mobile devices.
- Provide easy close options: Ensure users can easily close the pop-up without frustration.
Conclusion
Avoid these website design mistakes and keep your visitors happy this Halloween and beyond. Remember, the goal is to treat your users to a smooth, engaging, and visually pleasing experience—not trick them into leaving!
Happy Halloween! 🎃
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