Mistakes in Web Site Design
A Web Hosting Article Contributed by Frances Rhea
Web Site Design Errors
Creating a great web site design is a creative process but some common sense guidelines should be followed unless you want to drive your visitors away! There are some things that make your visitor crazy so they are best to avoid. Look at some of these common web site design errors and see why you should not fall into the same traps.
Page Counters on Your Web Site Design
Adding a page counter to your site does nothing except make you look like an amateur. Most hosting companies provide detailed server statistics. If you really what to know about your site visitors learn to understand the information provided by your web host.
Do Not Use Blinking or Flashing Text
This can be one of the most irritating thing you can do with your web site design. Leave the flashing to the neon sign above your favorite local bar. It does not belong on your web site.
Sensible Page or Section Titles
One of the main attributes of your web site design is the title. In the head tags of your HTMl there are '<title> </title>' tags where you specify the page's name. This will appear in the browsers top title bar and in any search engine results. Visitors look at page titles. Make sure yours are clear.
Don't Use Special Plug-Ins
Browsers 'see' things differently and some of the special effects are only available in one browser. Do not limit your audience because of this design flaw. Even Flash requires a special plug-in that some visitors may not have. If the element is essential to your site, they will go away without looking any further. (The Flash plug-in takes quite a bit of time to download! ) With proper use of style sheets and HTML you can present a fantastic web site design.
Avoid Using Frames
It used to be okay to use frames because of the poor layout capability of HTML. With style sheet positioning supported by major browsers, there is no need for frames. Besides frames are hard to create and use properly. They also cause problems with search engines or visitors linking to your site.
Fooling Search Engines
Tactics such as putting hundreds of key words on the pages as invisible text does not work! If you try to fool Google your web site will be eliminated from their searches. Remember that good content is the basis for high rankings and high traffic for your web site.
Chat Rooms in Your Web Site Design
Most people could care less about a chat room. Most of them are empty anyway!
Avoid Flash Intros for Your Site Design
A few years ago, Flash introduction pages where all the rage. You will find that the ‘skip intro' button is too often selected. Don't waste your time.
Under Construction
If your page is not finished, don't include it. If your links point to the page, disable it. It is better to post a ‘last updated' indicator and work on the new content.
