1. Browser Incompatibility
One of the most common faults with websites built over the last decade is that they are not cross compatible with browsers and mobile devices. So many people now use Google Chrome, Firefox and other browsers to access the internet as well as mobiles devices of all shapes and sizes. If your website isn't responsive and cross compatible then getting this fixed should be top of your to do list.
2. Poor Images
You don’t have to be a big chain to achieve top quality images on your website. Having a professional photographer or photography student to come in and take some pictures of your office, your staff, your products, your shop front, your promotional material and day to day activities can help your customers and give them a visual insight into what you do. You can also use them to create social media content.
3. Responsive Design
Responsiveness is a must have for your new and current web projects. Not only can a non-responsive website result in customer disengagement, it can also make it difficult for any potential customers to engage with you because they are unable to read the writing on your website or because they are unable to view your website (this is particularly a problem with flash based websites when viewed on apple devices).
4. Not knowing your voice
When writing new content for your website and your blog, do you set out what you want to achieve from the post and what the main point you want to get across is? It can often help to set this out within the first sentence of text you write as this will also help you focus the remainder of the content. Do you want to use a direct and strong voice when talking to your audience, or a softer more informal tone? This can often be discovered by knowing your audience but it is usually as simple as deciding on whether you write in the first or third person and whether or not you use personal pro nouns such as ‘I’ and ‘you’. This makes people feel more inclusive, involved and therefore aligned to your brand.
5. Not knowing your audience
Are your audience specific or do they include a large range of people? Are they of a certain gender, age, interest, geographical location, etc.? Do they respond better to strong facts and figures or softer, more personable communication? If you are a client facing business it is likely to be the latter; this means that the type of content you are distributing should be focused around useful information for your clients and your own products as well as developments in your industry and general news and events. If you mainly sell B2B then your content is going to be far more factual and informative than a consumer market but make sure to keep the personality and voice of your business as it is often what drives business sales.
6. Too much text
Sometimes less is more and it’s worthwhile writing some content and then leaving it a couple of days and coming back to it to see if you are able to make the same point in a better and more concise way. Equally, the layout of text can be overwhelming on a website. Paragraphs, columns, use of bold and italic can all ease this but whatever you use, make sure it is consistent across the whole site or it will end up looking out of place.
7. Poor navigation
Since your web address will be on all of your promotional materials it is important that when customers do land on your site, they are greeted with a simple, clear and pleasant experience. One way to organise your navigation might be to think about your customer’s journey through the site. Don’t confuse this with how you want your customers to navigate; map out where people visit the most and which information is going to be most useful to them. Often people visit the ‘Home’ page first, then if they continue they move onto an ‘about’ page to find out more about the business, its staff and its main selling points. Then perhaps a ‘shop’ or ‘services’ category where they can buy or discover more about products and then a ‘contact’ area if they have more questions. Other popular website sections are ‘news’, ‘blog’ and ‘portfolio’ which can be slotted in where appropriate to your customer base.
8. Badly Placed Contact information
If your contact information is unclear or difficult to find, potentials customers may not bother contacting you at all. Easy ways to combat this is to make sure that your contact information is available in the header, footer and on a clearly marked page on your website. Also try and keep it as simple as possible; one phone number, one email address, a contact form and the address of your headquarters is more than sufficient for most businesses.
9. Bad Layout and Accessibility
Confusing layout can be difficult to navigate through and find what you want. A search bar and clear links across your website are essential to making the customers journey as smooth as possible. It is important to take advantage of the placement of images and titles to assist you in clearly marking out different areas on a page and making information quick and easy to find. In terms of accessibility, you need to check with your web developer whether applications which help the deaf and blind navigate your website, are compatible and think about whether this has a large impact on your users or not.
10. Outdated Design
Ideally a design update every 2 to 3 years is needed to keep up with the changing web and coding standards as well as the evolution of mobile devices and technology in general. Not only will you be missing out on the latest developments in the tech world, your brand and design may also start to look aesthetically dated and this can really deter customers especially in a world where big brands are constantly changing and updating their branding and marketing messages.
11. Poor Domain Name
If a website is difficult to find either by a search engine or by an irrelevant domain name, customers won’t be able to reach the website let alone be driven away from it. A concise and relevant domain name is essential for your website to succeed in a world where consumers expect exploration of the web and online sales to be instant and with minimal fuss. Are you ‘.com’, ‘.co.uk’, ‘.org’ or another new suffix, it’s important to know the difference and make sure your domain name has the appropriate end.