Imagup General Magazine 2024
First impressions, as important as they are in human relationships, can also make a difference in user interactions with your website. And like in our everyday lives, whenever you walk into the supermarket to buy yourself oats for breakfast, chances are you will judge the product by its packaging. The same applies to site visitors. They can fall for or hate your website by first impressions alone.
Your website design matters more than you would imagine. When designing a website, you should envisage a situation akin to shoppers getting attracted to a product’s packaging. That’s because looks initially hint to shoppers that they are picking the right thing. Whether it is your plain design or your site’s loading time, there are fundamental aspects to focus on when creating a user-friendly website.
That said, websites aren’t only designed to boost awareness for your online presence but also as a platform for your brand identity where visitors come and shop for what they want. But unfortunately, there are key aspects that not all websites get right, which consequently repels users. Here is a compilation of the reasons why visitors hate your website you can find on Utopia Web Designs.
Your website doesn’t get updated with new content
This one of the most overlooked factors, but updating your website with new content on a regular basis is a good idea. Besides, Google uses fresh content as one of its ranking factors.
New content will give users a reason to visit your website. It is natural that people’s minds are filled with curiosity. And if they know that there is always something new to discover on your website, they will look for your website more often than not.
Your website has a slow-loading time
If you thought humans are impatient in real life, then wait until you get them to your website. People’s concentration spans are continually shrinking, which means that no one will want to spare an extra minute looking for information on your website.
If your website’s loading time is anything north of 2 seconds, then at least half your traffic thinks that it’s slow. Research by KISS metrics revealed that at least 47% of site visitors expect a site loading time of 2 seconds or less when visiting your website. Otherwise, they will bounce off and look for information elsewhere.
Furthermore, a massive 43% of site visitors will leave your website if it takes more than three seconds to load. So, for whatever it’s worth, ensure that you optimize your site for fast loading times of at most 2 seconds. Site owners should prioritize loading times to ensure they retain customers on their sites. Otherwise, at least 16% will abandon your site altogether.
If your site has no giveaways or reward-based referral systems
If an e-commerce website, for instance, does not have contests or regular referral rewards as part of its commerce strategy, then it’s unlikely that visitors will come to your site more often.
Site users love contests that end in giveaways. Besides, it will give them a reason to come back to your site in the future. On the other hand, you will get an opportunity to gain insight into their interests, which is ideal for targeted marketing.
If your website has too many or unnecessary pop-ups
First, site visitors want information on your site. that is the primary goal that your site has to guarantee and respect. And a serious or time-starved visitor will not take it lightly if your site is marred with pop-ups. Informative pop-ups could be great, but too many could end up annoying customers. As a result, they may leave your site and never visit again.
If you must use pop-ups, you have to organize them to sync with your content instead of impeding the user interface. To get your pop-ups right, you need to have the relevant tips on creating a user-friendly and smart CTA.
Your website offers poor navigation
Bear in mind that visitors already know what they want as they come to your landing page. A website with great navigation will provide proper and clear navigation as to what your users want to do.
If your site does not give clear instructions, directions, and steps to your users on what to do, then the confusion will only serve to drive away from the traffic.
Your site isn’t optimized for mobile viewing
Today, there is more smartphone dominance than ever before. This means that more than 60% of the traffic you should receive on your website is from mobile users. And you can’t afford to lose this faction of site visitors.
If mobile devices can’t access your site, then chances are users will hate it because it isn’t optimized for mobile viewing. To ensure that users keep using your site, make it fully optimized for mobile.
If your web pages have poor use of typography
Good use of typography involves the choice of fonts, texts, and typefaces. A good website should have a maximum of three font types and sizes. It is important to choose a single one and stick to it because inconsistent use of typography is confusing and will only frustrate users.
Your website does not have social media buttons
After creating a website, remember that visitors from all walks of life are bound to find their way on it. That said, imagine if they find some interesting content that they can’t share with their followers on social media. It would be quite a disappointment for your site visitors not to find buttons to share.
The bottom line
The primary goal of creating a website is to have a massive audience outreach. And to achieve that goal, you have to make everything on your website work towards achieving it. The aspects outlined in this article will make it hard to meet your objectives. Therefore, focus on designing a website that meets your audience’s needs to make sure it accommodates everyone.
If you get the aspects mentioned above right, chances are traffic will beef up on your website, and you will be primed to have more leads and conversions. After all, that is the primary reason you should have a website in the first place.
