Criminal behaviour
Perhaps a more appropriate title would be: "The 7 biggest crimes of the website owner - and why didn't my agency tell me about this in the first place?" Perhaps they didn't know.
1. Table-based layouts
Two words: Web Standards. There is no excuse anymore for a site not to follow the guidelines laid down by the W3C. Browsers are mature enough now that we don't have to use tables and invisible spacer images to make the design look how we want. Tables slow down page rendering time and cause problems when visiting the page from a mobile or assistive device (such as a screen reader). Often design is forced to fit a specific screen size using this technique, but with the predominance in the market of mobile devices such as the Blackberry, design needs to be much more flexible.
2. Clarity of purpose
Having a website that doesn't quickly convey the business you are in and the solutions you offer to your visitors. You would be surprised at how many small business websites leave you pondering, "What exactly do they do? - usually followed by that person exiting the site without looking past the home page.
3. Failure to analyse statistics and user behaviour
Successful commercial websites understand the critical importance of analysing their website traffic. At the very least you should know the number of unique visitors, percentage of returning visitors, what journeys people are taking through the site, what information is being read and what isn't. You should also know which pages people are exiting. Over time you should be benchmarking and creating 'key performance indicators' to evaluate the performance of new and established pages/sections/products/sales/incentives and so on.
4. Testing, testing 1,2,3
Does your website work in all available browsers? Firefox is rapidly gaining market share over Internet Explorer and the latest version of IE7 behaves differently to its predecessor. At the very least, your site should be tested in all current browsers - and don't forget the Mac and Linux users!
Have you had third party testing feedback on your site? You know the site inside out as does your agency, but a fresh pair of eyes will often see glaring oversights straight away.
5. Inaccurate use of keywords
Misreading the proper keywords that web users are actually searching by is a common problem. Many companies choose keywords that they personally associate with their sphere of business without researching what their client's description would be.
6. Poor design
Your website is the face you show to the world. Your clients may never see your office, but they will almost always see your site. While an impressive off-line business address may be out of your reach, an impressive online presence can be had for a mere fraction of the price of the lease on a prestigious office space.
7. Duplicate content (multiple content)
This will appear as nothing more than padding. The company represented by the site has simply run out of things to say. Many people attempt to attract better search rankings by repeating what they see as key content, a practice that, unfortunately, has quite the opposite effect.
Read more about common website misdemeanours
What next?
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Contact us or dial 01322 277255 and ask to speak to Myles Davidson or Simon Surtees