What makes for bad website design? Webhosting and web design are a crucial part of any business in the modern era but so often, we see websites make the same mistakes over and over.

As of last year, there were 354.7 million domains online. Yet how many of these are exemplary examples of web design and how many are shoddily-built and haphazard?

Every hour of the day, 27,000 people come online for the first time. If your business relies on poorly designed websites, you aren’t going to win any of them as clients. Bad website design leads to lost income.

In this guide, we’ll show you some of the mistakes that terrible websites continue to make and why you need to avoid them. Ready to learn more? Keep reading.

1. Slow Loading

One of the worst things a website can do is be slow. If your website is slow, you’re going to annoy visitors who will head to another website that’s snappier and easier to use.

Yet this isn’t the only problem with slow load times. Google cares a lot about page speed and having a slow website can make you rank lower in search results. This means it can hamper any other SEO improvements you make to your site.

You can make your website faster by choosing a minimal and professional web design, compressing images, and not running too many scripts.

2. No Mobile Optimization

Does your website display well on mobile? One of the hallmarks of poorly designed websites is that they only show the desktop version on your phone. This means that users need to zoom in to use elements and navigate the page horizontally as well as vertically.

Like page speed, this isn’t only bad for customer satisfaction. Google indexes your site using your mobile version, which means that if it’s not well designed, your website will not be ranked well.

Don’t ignore mobile web design. It’s a crucial aspect of modern web design.

3. A Lack of Clear Navigation

No one wants to get stuck in a maze of a website. Your site should feature easy to use navigation features and buttons that clearly tell the user where they’re going. This means no floating graphical buttons that they need to click: plain and simple buttons at the top of the screen are perfect.

If you need a little more detail, use a drop-down menu.

4. Too Many Elements

Poorly designed websites often jam as many elements as possible into their webpages. This means navigating the site or even determining its purpose are nigh-on impossible.

Minimalist web design can help you here. These websites allow for simple navigation and a keen display of purpose. The user should never be wondering what you do and what you sell.

In short, avoid website design that features too many pictures, disparate text boxes, and messy designs.

Avoiding Poorly Designed Websites

A well-designed website can make all the difference to your business and that’s where we come in. We’ve had enough of the many poorly designed websites that clutter the internet: we want to make yours the best it can be.

Take a look at examples of our work. If you like what you see, get in touch with us!