You know you need a website – but a bad website is bad for business. These 5 business website design mistakes can cost you money. Find them out here.

Every business needs a professional website to have an effective web presence.

But when it comes to business website design, there are a TON of common mistakes.

Even seasoned web designers can sometimes fall into the trap of these mistakes. They’ll leave your website difficult to navigate and unprofessional. Your search engine rankings may be affected.

Above all else, they lead to a loss of potential customers and business.

Hiring the right professional web designer is the simple way to ensure that your web presence is effective.

But, if you’re considering designing a business website on your own, check out these five common design mistakes – so you don’t make them!

1. Don’t Fall into the Trap of an Ineffective Landing Page

Your landing page is the first thing that visitors to your website see. It’s also the number one place where amateur web designers struggle.

Start with these several elements that every landing page needs.

Your company name and logo should be visible. You’ll need some kind of menu directing visitors to other areas of your site. You’ll also need a search function.

But, creating an effective landing page also requires knowing what NOT to have.

Having too much white space, for instance, will make your page appear dull.

But your page can’t be too “busy” either. You don’t want a cluttered mess of a landing page that leaves clients confused.

You also need a call-to-action.

This call to action is a way to get visitors interested in what you’re offering. It’s often a place for visitors to enter their email address to sign up for a newsletter or to join your site as a member.

To get visitors to answer the call to action, you might consider offering something in return.

A free ebook, a quick guide related to your product or service, or some other small, web based item – they’re all great choices.

2. Making it Too Hard to Navigate Your Site

One of the biggest mistakes that businesses make is not making their site easy to navigate.

If visitors have trouble finding their way from one page to the next, they aren’t going to stay on your page for long. Web surfers are often looking for fast answers to their questions.

There are several key elements that make navigation easy.

The first is a search bar.

Having a search bar function makes it simple for visitors to find exactly what they are looking for. It’s also great for returning visitors who want to find an article that they have looked at before.

Another important element is a menu with links to the different pages of your website. Separating your website material into pages simplifies the search process. It also makes your site appear more professional.

3. Inconsistency Across Pages

Failing to have your pages match your theme and brand is a big mistake.

As visitors to your site go from page to page, they’re expecting consistency. Without that, your website will appear unprofessional and unpolished.

Combat this by creating a template for your pages and posts.

Choose a style that’s easy to read and navigate. Pick a single font for the copy on your site, and another for headings. Stick to a single color scheme.

If you’re using images, decide how many should  be included in each post, and then keep it consistent.  If your site is going to have ads on it, make sure that they are in the same place on each page.

Consistency across your pages also includes consistency within the text on your site. This makes your site more professional and can also help boost your ranking on search engines.

Keywords relevant to your business help web surfers find your site on search engines.

But using too many keywords is ineffective.

To boost your SEO, stick to a smaller number of more relevant words.

4. Not Testing Your Page

If your website doesn’t load on all major browsers, you’re missing out on traffic.

This is one of the most common rookie mistakes that a business can make.

Many amateur web page designers don’t bother to test their site on any other browsers. They assume that because the site loads on one web browser, then it will load on others.

But that isn’t always the case. If you don’t test your site, you also might not even realize that it isn’t loading.

Another mistake many web developers make is not optimizing their site for mobile viewing.

According to the Pew Research Center, nearly two-thirds of all Americans own a smartphone.

Many of those smartphone owners use their devices to search the internet on a daily basis. If they can’t load your site properly, or can’t load it at all, you’re missing out on this huge chunk of web surfers.

5. A Lack of Branding

Your company’s brand is an important element in your business website design.

Your brand is what allows customers to recognize your company or products. It gives your company a professional edge.

But if it isn’t visible in your website’s design, you’re making a big mistake.

Each page of your website should reflect your company’s brand.

The colors should match or coordinate. Your company’s logo should be visible on each page.

You should also consider the tone of your brand when writing copy for your site.

If your brand is more easygoing and casual, your style of writing should reflect that. The same goes for a brand that is more professional and serious.

Building Better Business Website Design

Making any of the above business website design mistakes can do more than result in an unprofessional website. They can seriously affect your bottom-line.

Invest in an effective web presence. Don’t lose your hard work by falling into any of these traps.

If you’re new to web design, or if you worry that you might be making mistakes, seek help!

A professional web designer can help make sure your website has everything it needs.

They can save you time, effort and stress. Wouldn’t you like a website that’s professional and ready to go?