Web design mistakes that small businesses MUST avoid

Simply having a website does not spell business success. If you have an online identity, but still fail to convert as desired, you need to evaluate. Where are you going wrong with your website design? What seems to be the problem? Remember, you are not alone in being saddled with a bad website. This issue is more common than you think.

Here is a list of the top most web design mistakes small businesses make. Is your website guilty on any of these counts?

1. Where you buried the contact information?
   If you are not presenting the contact information clearly, you fail the main motive of site design! Place your business information where it should be, BEFORE EVERYBODY’S EYES!
2. Do not ignore the benefits of a white space!
   Remember, just as less information is harmful over information can be too. So, try to keep blank or white spaces on the webpage to give your visitors a breather from time to time and prevent content bombardment.
3. Are there dead links on the page?
   Then you are surely in for a fall! Make sure that all the links on your small business site work, as they should or else visitors fail to convert.
4. No grammatical errors or typos please
   Make sure that the content available to your readers is free from grammatical errors or typos, as these show a lack of professionalism and reflect poorly on your business as well.
5. Are you catering to your mobile audience?
   These days much of the Internet traffic comes from mobile users. So, you should go for responsive website design to catch the attention of your cell phone audience.
6. Social media is the new age marketing mantra
   Create killer profiles for Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn, make posts, and don’t forget to ensure that social media buttons are clickable and visible on your site.
7. Website optimization is important too
   Content, video, graphics, social media, and mobile optimization, all are quite crucial. So don’t ignore them at any cost.
8. How is the navigation on your site?
   Navigation should be effortless because you have just 10 seconds to catch the viewer’s attention and keep them on the site. A bad navigation surely won’t help matters.
9. Is there due stress on content presentation?
   Don’t overwhelm or overload the visitors with content create a visually strong hierarchy so that finding the desired information becomes easier.
10. How effective is the call to action?
    A good punch line and effective call to action can do wonders to your website conversion and spell small business success.
11. Good contrast & color use
    Intelligent use of color and contrast of the website will make the presented content soothing to the eye and legible besides imparting a professional look.
12. DIY route is not always the best idea
    DIY websites fail to convert in most cases so even if you are running on a budget, do try to rope in a professional who knows the job.
13. Know your target audience
    It won’t do to simply design a website. First, try to understand your target market and then develop in accordance to get the best results.
14. Too flashy may not work
    Use of too much Flash, graphics, and style may bode ill for website design so make sure to strike the right balance.
15. Are you going for regular updates?
    Regularly updating the website content to keep it relevant is extremely important. Are you aware of this?