7 Common Mistakes in Website Design and Development and How to Avoid Them

Web design and development have improved drastically in the last decade. Just look at the websites of big brands. You can see how much the design has improved and how easy it is to navigate their websites compared to the past.

To develop a reliable and functioning business website, you need team effort. But what is website design and development? In this blog post, we will learn the overview of what happens in website creation and their common mistakes so you can avoid them.

What Is Web Design?

This part of the website creation mostly involves the front-end development or the user interface. It is the visual part that includes the logo, web layout, themes, and the overlook of the website.

Web design also covers UX design. It ensures the website is accessible on multiple devices, so viewers will have no problem navigating it. So you can say that web designing is all about the look and usability of a website.

What Is Web Development?

While web designers create the elements of the website, web developers are in charge of bringing them to life and making the website function. For example, designers design the navigation buttons, and website developers develop a program to ensure these buttons work to complete an action.

Web development also involves creating features that provide solutions to customers. For example, web developers of ecommerce websites create several payment channels for customers, so they complete their purchases in the payment method most convenient for them.

7 Mistakes in Web Design and Development and How to Avoid Them

Developing websites is not an easy task. Even with professional help, you can still make mistakes. But, as business owners, getting involved in creating your website is also important. Here are common mistakes and ways how to avoid them.

Unorganized Content Layout

Your site visitors will form their initial opinion of your website based on what they see. So, after creating digital content, the next thing you need to do is to strategically place them on your web pages. It will confuse users if they don't know what to do first.

How to avoid them: Consider your website's design hierarchy. Users follow a certain pattern when browsing a website. Make sure your users can easily access different pages and make their navigation smooth to give a positive user experience and later turn to conversions.

Long Website Loading Time

There is a high chance that visitors will abandon your website when it takes too long to load, including images and other graphic elements. Consider all the factors that might influence how fast a page loads. 

How to avoid them: If you have several images on your website, you may want to reduce them or lower their quality. The big file size can slow the loading time. It also goes the same if you have too many elements on your web page. Limit them as much as possible.

Furthermore, investing in a web hosting service will ensure that your website's loading time is fast and guarantees no downtime.

Irrelevant and Has No Content Update

Let's say you launched your website a year ago, but no new content has been uploaded since then. What do you think your visitors will feel about it? They'll think your company has shut down or is no longer in operation.

How to avoid them: Posting content regularly will keep your website active. A weekly blog post is one content business owners should maximize. When posting blogs, the content should still be relevant to your business. Don't just upload content for the sake of the activity. It should be something your target audience should relate to.

For example, if your business involves selling fitness products, you may want to do a blog post on exercises that promote weight loss. You can also do demonstration videos to boost your content if you have resources.

Broken Links and Too Forwarded Links

The positioning of your internal links is crucial for your website, and it can be the reason why you are not making conversions. For example, if you are linking your social media pages on the very top of your website, your viewers might leave the page without them seeing the entirety of your web pages.

The same goes for broken links. If you want to lead your viewers to one of your pages, make sure it works because it will be frustrating on their part, especially when they are really looking forward to it.

How to avoid them: Make it a practice to regularly monitor your website's links. Make sure all of them work and lead your customers to the right page you intend to. Furthermore, link positioning is important. Let your customers get a good scan of your landing page before leading them to another page.

Have your customers first see the necessary information about your business; when they have a good overview, you can insert a link to your other pages.

No SEO Analytics Tool Is in Place

No web design is perfect. You will eventually encounter problems with your website. But how will you come up with solutions when you can pinpoint the exact problems? Unfortunately, most website managers or business owners don't see the importance of an SEO analytics tool.

How to avoid them: Invest in SEO analytics tools. Analytics will give you data like how long users stay on your website, their patterns, and interactions with the elements on your webpage. Your users' digital experiences will help you decide if you need to redesign websites or stick with your plans.

Furthermore, digital marketing trends are fast changing. Your visitors will change preferences over time. Analytics will show you metrics where you can improve, change, and even what to remove from your website.

Unclear Brand Message or Missing Call to Action

What might be wrong if a lot of people visit your website but make no purchases? Online shoppers like to see messages telling them exactly what they need to do. So when customers come to your page, give them something to do, like sign up for your newsletters or check out products on sale or your new content.

If they have a purpose on your website, it will surely lead to conversions.

How to avoid them: Call to actions messages are effective. Make them explicit and be direct to the point. When people carry out tasks on your website, they are inclined to finish the purpose of their visit, and often times it means buying from your business.

The Development Approach Doesn't Incorporate Enough Testing and Planning

Owners often get excited about putting their businesses online, which makes them skip the testing and planning phase. Understandably, owners want to see their websites immediately, which leads to many issues. Once the website is live and there are still many changes, it will only cause your business more expenses.

How to avoid: Make sure to complete a detailed plan with your designers. Ensure every element is crafted to serve your customers and reflect your business branding. Also, never skip testing phases. Your website should at least go through tests twice to ensure that all its functions are running and gather data about how users feel about your design.

Final Thoughts

A functioning and engaging website can catapult your business to success. That's why you must be keen when planning its design and development. We hope these common mistakes help you plan your website more thoroughly.
Furthermore, take advantage of website design and development services. Mesmeric offers all-in-one website design services from designing, web hosting, content management, and UI/UX development. Learn more about our services and work with us today.