Web design can be complicated because of a variety of elements and factors. They can also make it more difficult for users to use the site. If you don’t want to alienate your target audience, here are the six most common mistakes in website design.
1. Your website should not be cluttered –
You run the risk of creating a weak foundation and adding unnecessary elements simply because they are there.
Before you start designing, it’s worth learning the basics of design. It is important to have a clear idea of the goals and objectives for your website. Web design software today offers so many tools and options (pop-ups animated logos embedded video), that even amateur designers can quickly become overwhelmed.
Do not get caught up in busy designs that overwhelm users with pop-up ads, autoplaying videos (plural), and a chaotic navigation bar. Instead, do a Marie Kondo to keep your web design clutter-free.
It is easy to avoid overcrowding your design. This is because you must resist the temptation to add more elements to your website “to see what happens”. If you don’t know what an element on your page does, it should not be there. To give users the best possible experience, keep your focus on creating a simple, solid structure.
2. 2.) Jump straight on the computer
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This second mistake in web design leads us straight to the heart and soul of the design process. Web design is still viewed by most business owners, and a large number of amateur web designers as an activity that happens “on the computer”.
Although it is true that you will see your final creation in this manner, there are many things that can be done to improve its design. When designing your website, it is best to use more traditional artistic techniques than relying on a web designer or program.
The best way to design a website is to use a pencil and paper. First, create a list with your objectives and then design pages that focus on this core objective.
This will help you spot redundancies and streamline your website.
This is why web designers who are the best can charge high fees. They don’t know website-building software, although most people can. However, they are skilled in structuring websites and can assist you in ensuring that your vision is realized before you even touch a computer.
3. 3.
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Next, you will need to create templates for your pages. Even the most basic website builders have tools to help you set grids, columns, and guidelines. These tools are often overlooked by younger web designers, who believe they are only for older sites.
Grids are the fundamental structural element of any well-designed web site. They should be used to organize the visual elements on a page. Grids and guidelines were the foundation of graphic design skills long before the advent of web design. They will continue to be an essential tool for many years.
No matter how visible the grids or columns lines are on your website, they still serve as the foundation of your site’s underlying framework and determine the proportions of elements. Grids are used to divide web pages horizontally and vertically. They also dictate the alignment of different design elements.
It is possible to combine grid-based design and more modern design techniques with consumer research. There are many ways that consumers interact with the internet, so there is a wide range of expectations about how different web pages should look and feel.
4. Inadequacy of visual hierarchy
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Our fourth mistake in website design is slightly more complicated, at least for newbies to web design. We see the most common mistake on new websites: they ignore the importance of visual hierarchy.
Visual hierarchy is defined as the orderly arrangement of elements, according to their importance. If you don’t do this correctly, users may be overwhelmed by all the features in your designs trying to grab their attention. This will result in no conversions as they won’t be directed efficiently to your CTA.
You can create a visual hierarchy by thinking about why your visitors are visiting your site. Do UX research to ensure that the user flow is seamless and intuitive.
Ecommerce sites are a good example. They keep their branding out of the user experience. They serve as a portal where customers can find and purchase the products they are interested in.
A lot of ecommerce websites are well designed and will remind users which site they are on after they have finished the seamless, smooth process of purchasing a specific item.
5. 5.
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Accessibility is also a very important aspect in web design, and overlooking it can seriously affect the results that your site achieves. Many companies recognize the importance of making websites accessible to people with disabilities and abilities.
While there are moral reasons to make your site accessible to as many people as possible, there is also a business argument. Your chances of selling well can be increased by expanding your audience.
Even if you are not legally required to make your site accessible at the moment, it’s likely that industry standards will require this in the not-too-distant future. It can be costly and time-consuming to retroactively add accessibility to a website that wasn’t designed with accessibility in view.
Before you create your web designs, think about how text, images, and sound are used. Include audio descriptions with alt tags for images. Keep your copy clear and well-spaced in a legible font. If you’re featuring videos, allow users to choose to press play rather than leaving them on an auto setting and conduct research into the user experience you want to create.
Accessibility is a key component of design. This will result in more creative, innovative and intelligently designed websites. While you can experiment with new trends, you can also ensure that they are implemented in your design with purpose. A website should not be difficult to find.
6. Not designing for mobile
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This is the last mistake in website design that we have listed. It is still being made by most companies when they design their first website. Web design is still viewed as something that occurs “on the computer”. Many people still view mobile browsing as an “alternative to” the main experience of a website, the desktop site. This is simply not true anymore. In fact, mobile browsing now accounts for the majority of internet traffic and so many designers will actually make a mobile site before they make the desktop site.
This strategy is also known as “mobile-first” and is very popular among large companies. It is a mistake to design your website desktop-first. This can lead to a site that looks too slow or cluttered on mobile devices. Instead, design your website for mobile devices first and then expand to a desktop version of the site next.
Mobile-friendly design is a good idea. According to London-based web developer Alexander Williams of Hosting Data, improving conversions should be your main goal when designing a website, and in a world where the majority of visitors are going to be using a smartphone, they need to be able to buy products straight from their phone.
This principle can also be applied to smart devices and tablets as well as any other internet-enabled hardware. In other words, your web design must be accessible on different devices and responsive enough to adjust to suit the various devices. This can be hard because you need to pay attention to many factors, including the layout of your pages and the size of the images.
If in doubt…
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Hire a professional. Although the mistakes we have listed are easy to overlook, they can be very costly if you’re new to web design. Even the big businesses get it wrong sometimes, but collaborating with a designer means you’re giving your brand the best chance possible.
