New websites that are clean, crisp and clear need to also follow some best practices to ensure the site doesn’t turn away potential clients.

1. 1. EXCESSIVE & UNCLEAR INFORMATION

      Too much too read can leave people feeling overwhelmed or confused.  Particuarly when too many words are used. Irrelevant or missing information can be off-putting, meaning we could be losing clients or be spending unecessary time on the phone.
      Best practice – Be informative using clear and concise language. Avoid using jargon as the average reader won’t understand. Also watch the tone used by selecting words carefully. How we come across to the client matters.

   2. THIRD PARTY LINKS, IMAGES & INFORMATION
      

      Linking to sites you’re not affiliated with unless the information is relevant to a blog post. Sometimes i’ts perfectly alright. E.g. When we already have permission to use content and cite an author and link back to site.  Some sites have it clearly written in their terms of use policy that permission is required before linking back to their site and/or using their logo or images. So please read them.
      Best practice – Make sure that written permission is given prior to using anyone elses link or blog post or information. Images are generally copyrighted, so do some research to make sure you’re not infringing on other peoples property before using them.  There are heaps of free images for commercial use online.

   3. POOR NAVIGATION
      

      People on average spend around three minutes on a website. Getting their attention is only the beginning.
      Best practice – Make your website friendly to use, particularly when searching through pages to keep potential clients interested.

   4. POPUPS
      

      There are literally thousands of websites who make the mistake of using popups that literally pop up when their site is accessed.  Most people are inclined to close the popup.  When going to read the information we’ve been searching for, a popup in our faces has to be the most annoying practice around resulting in the growing popularity of popup blockers.
      Best practice – Have the option located somewhere on the home page where it is emphasized so it can be seen.

   5. PAGINATION
      

      Sites that promise but deliver only one portion of information or story at a time forcing us to click onto the next section. The page with the snippet of information usually has a lot of advertising beside it and below it.  Before you know it you’ve clicked through five pages for something that could have been placed on one.  I’ve found it to be a huge time waster and most annoying ‘click bait’ used to improve website ranking (SEO). This pagination practice can cause potential clients to lose intererest quickly.
      Best practice – Completely avoid the tactic.

   6. SOUND
      

      Have you ever visited a site that required you to multitask?  Thats right, trying to digest the information while listening to a melody we aren’t interesting in can get us into mad rush to turn it off. It’s most likely that by the time we’ve found out how to do it, we’ve become frustrated.
      Best practice – Avoid using music in the background of your site unless of course your site is about music, in which case it is totally reasonable. But even so, it can still be annoying. Music sites with options to play sample music are probably more in tune to what the site visitor wants.

Sandra Ciminelli
Web Designer