Finally, you are going all aboard to make your company’s presence felt online. That’s literally like creating a new image. You are going to be judged on the basis of the quality of your website, irrespective of the quality of your product or services. So, if you need to get this right, look below to find out 10 pitfalls to be avoided, that can make your website fail. Just by keeping these pointers in mind, you can create a classy, functional and popular website.
Unplanned Content Layout
Unplanned and cluttered content can lead to a confusing layout that prevents users from quick scanning. Design a clear hierarchy of how the content needs to be placed on the website. Planning the content should be given as much significance as designing as website. Focus on your product and guide the customer through the pages to make it a success. Cut out irrelevant pages such as pop-up windows and splash pages, unless deemed necessary. They can frustrate the user and create a negative impact on your products. Also, updating the content regularly is important. Maintain up-to-date information on your website to increase customer re-visits.
Design, High Resolution Stocks, Bad Colour and Contrast
Concentrating too much on design can distract from functionality of the website. It is a common mistake most developers make – focussing on design. The design should be simple, lightweight, responsive and catering to the brand image of the company or product. Use pleasant colours that are complementary to your brand image. Similarly, high resolution images make the website heavier, slower to upload and adversely affect traffic flow to the website.
Poor Readability and Legibility
Too much information that makes a reader lose interest. Let the content breathe with some white space in between. Illegible font and size of the text too can turn off your client. While a good design will draw customers, important information has to be passed in shortest possible time to keep the customer hooked. Ensure multiple-browser compatible fonts, formats and suitable size of the text uploaded to maintain legibility.
Navigation Issues
Imagine slow uploads, broken links or complicated forms and a confused user trying to figure out how to find a particular information on the webpage. Navigation crisis is the easiest way to lose your customer. First of all, include a search box in your webpage. Create a customer friendly page with a sitemap to assist them. Try to hire external handlers for any action such as mailer responses etc., that consumes processor time. It is important create responsive design for your website to enable seamless navigation across all kinds of devices such as smartphones, tabs and laptops.
SEO optimisation
Search Engine optimisation (SEO) is connected with content management, images, keywords, site map etc., It helps in eradicating duplicate content, quality linking features and designing optimum site structure. Don’t postpone SEO as a last minute activity. Understanding and tracking the browser indexing of webpages is important to give your website an edge over others. Postponing SEO till the last minute might lead to rewriting the entire project at the last minute.
Scalability
A common mistake that many developers make is overlooking expansion possibilities. With time constraint hanging over their heads and in a hurry to get the website online, they forget to plan for scalability of the website. Due to this many developers end up redoing the codes of a significant portion of the website. Look beyond your Minimum viable product (MVP), developers aren’t able to foresee beyond scalable server spaces. Plan for external storage solutions and other synchronisation services in advance to address future scalability issues.
Forms and registration
While it is important to know and register your customer, complicated registration process and detailed forms asking for too much information is a definite turn-off. Remember, the user has a host of websites to choose from and can easily migrate to the next one. Also, the data required may not be as intended. Some data may be intentionally corrupted to rig the database. Use data validation techniques available in market today to ensure valid data points.
Testing and phasing
Testing your website, its functionality and various features, is imperative before going live to avoid future HTTP 404 error or site under reconstruction messages. Test user interfaces across all kinds of devices to ensure optimal performance. It will help you calibrate the features of websites in different devices and avoid potential hassle. Phasing of websites should be done ensuring the features in a particular phase are fully functional. Do not confuse phasing with project completion. Each phase launched should give you an insight for future scalability issues.
The bottom line of the entire article is – Planning. Plan your content, design, images, interface and avoid unnecessary overload of information. Whether it is your website, service or a complicated web application, keeping in mind these few pointers can help you go a long way to creating a successful online presence.