4 Most Common Website Mistakes. And How to Fix Them

It’s pretty easy to overlook something little and make mistakes in a movie. I’m surprised it doesn’t happen more often. But these “little” mistakes add up. I mean come on! Should Johnny Depp really be wearing Adidas instead of Under Armour or Nike? 

Just like in the movies, “little” mistakes on your website add up to become major problems. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if you could find these mistakes, fix them, and consistently get a flow of qualified traffic to your website? Imagine converting that traffic into qualified leads. You don’t have to imagine it when you fix the 4 most common website mistakes. 

After analyzing thousands of websites, we discovered what the 4 most common website mistakes are. (Schedule a consultation with one of our certified Website Tune Up Professionals to "Tune Up" your website.)

In this article, you’ll learn what those 4 most common website mistakes are. Then you’ll learn how to fix them without wasting a ton of time and money.

The 4 Most Common Website Mistakes

Before delving into the 4 website mistakes, let’s talk about why you have a website in the first place.

We believe that the primary purpose of a website is to capture leads you can follow up with later.

If you don’t agree, we’re always open to feedback and comments, so please let us know what you think the primary purpose of your website is.

Now that you understand the primary purpose of your website, let’s talk about the 4 most common mistakes we’ve uncovered.

Website Mistake #1: Website Usability

Does your website clearly state your product or service? Does it clearly state the benefit to your audience? The most common mistake we see is when a website isn’t clear on what they do. Or when they don’t make it obvious what to do next. You have about 15-20 seconds to capture the interest of your audience. If your website isn’t clear, they’ll click the back button and end up at a competitors website. 

How to Fix It

Website usability means clearly telling your visitors 3 things: Here’s what we got…here’s what it will do for you…and here’s what to do next. 

Seems obvious, doesn’t it? Just like there obviously shouldn’t be an airplane in the sky during the battle of Troy, which took place 3,000+ years ago. But unclear websites are still far and away from the #1 mistake we see when we do a website analysis.

Website Mistake #2: Optimization

Optimizing your website isn’t as hard as you think. Business owners tell us all the time that their website is already optimized because they just Googled their business name and they came up on the first page. Well, that’s great…if your customers already know your name.

How to Fix It

Here are 2 quick and easy (but critical) on-page optimization tips you can implement today:

1. Use Keyphrases: Use keyphrases in your title tag, heading tags, meta description, and alt attributes (image tags). For example, what do you think the title tag for your home page should be if your company name is HD Supply and you supply gardening equipment to landscape architects in Dallas, TX? Should it be “HD Supply”? Or “gardening equipment for landscape architects Dallas TX”?
2. Properly Install Sitemap: A sitemap allows Google to search and index your site. It’s critical to have an XML Sitemap properly installed. If you don’t have one, or if it isn’t properly installed, your website is invisible to the search engines.

It’s not as hard as you think (especially if you have a WordPress site). It’s about as hard as remembering to take your watch off during a scene in The Lord of The Rings. Shame on you Gandalf!

Website Mistake #3: Blogging

Blogging is a mistake mostly because it’s a missed opportunity.

Blogging is your biggest opportunity to get more leads & improve your search results. Content marketing costs 62% less than traditional marketing and generates about 3 times as many leads.

How to Fix It

We recommend blogging at least once per week. We also recommend adding a call-to-action at the end of every blog so you can capture leads. Offer something of value in exchange for their contact information. 

I believe the reason most businesses don’t blog consistently is that it takes time. It takes time to create valuable content and it takes time to see results. Most people aren't into delayed gratification. But as you can see from the stat above, it’s worth the effort. 

I guess people prefer to walk to Mordor rather than just taking a car (my last Lord of the Rings reference, I promise):

Website Mistake #4: Thinking Your Website is Done

Don’t shoot the messenger, but your website is never done. The biggest on-going mistake we see is that businesses think they’re done when they launch their website. Your website is like a garden. Take care of it.

How to Fix It

Imagine being on the first page of Google for your market and just raking in the leads. You’re killing it, right? Then all of a sudden you fall off of Google completely and have no idea why.

We see this all the time. Google changed its algorithm 500+ times last year. Anyone of those changes can dramatically affect your search engine results. But if you’re navigating those changes and updating the content on your site (i.e. blogging), then you can evolve with the times and avoid getting kicked off Google.

Don’t make the same mistake as this wardrobe consultant did. Just like your website is never done, neither is the job of the wardrobe consultant on a movie set:

What to Expect

Maybe you’re asking yourself, “How much time and money is it going to take to fix these mistakes? Does this even apply to my business?” The simple answer is: You’re either going to have to spend some time to do it yourself or spend some money to hire someone to do it for you.

Whatever you decide to do, now you know what to look for and the ‘how-to’ basics to fix the mistakes. At least you won’t end up wasting your time and money on things you don’t need.

Pick the Low-Hanging Fruit

You’re probably also wondering, “What’s in it for me?“ The first step is to pick the “low-hanging fruit.” In this case, that would mean improving your on-page optimization and fixing any optimization errors. Once you optimize your site, make sure it’s mobile-friendly, and properly install your XML sitemap, you should expect to see a bump in traffic in 5-6 weeks. 

Blogging takes longer. We’ve seen clients start from scratch and increase lead generation by 500% to 1,000% in 5-6 months after implementing our recommendations.

Next Steps

Remember that your website is like a garden. If you don't take care of it, it will wither and die.

Your homework assignment is to check and see if you’re making any of the 4 most common website mistakes. If you’d like us to check for you and get a fresh perspective, we’ll gladly do a website analysis for free. Simply click here to schedule a conversation and get started!

To your continued success, 

Hendrik