Nov 23 2005
The Web, despite its various advances in technology, is filled with poorly designed sites. This may just be a fact of the Web, but the worst offenders are businesses, unfortunately. It's not that there are so many. Rather, it's the fact that these horribly designed sites are meant to represent what's very likely a solid, growing business.
Regrettably, those with poorly designed sites will fail. It's an almost certainty. Think of it this way... if a salesman came to you dressed in greasy jeans, a t-shirt that's seen better days, uncombed hair and worn out sneakers, trying to sell you a product that costs more than a few bucks, would you buy it? Chances are probably not. Sure, products need to be of quality, but if a business can't take pride in their image, how are consumers supposed to believe that they take pride in their product (and much less its quality)? So what can you do to make sure your business gives a professional image online? There's an infinite number of things, really. But here's a short list of things to avoid that should certainly keep your website looking great. It's by no means a comprehensive list, but it's a start. Feel free to add to it in the comments area.
- Spelling mistakes
- Designing for a specific browser
- Designing for a specific screen resolution
- Inconsistent layout
- "Site under construction" with no link to a previous site version
- Endlessly scrolling pages
- Using frames
- Blinking anything
- Poor choice of background and text color combinations
- Slow download times
- Navigation that is anything but intuitive
- Never-ending, intrusive animation
- Sound with no volume control
- No "skip intro" link