Why Your Industry Navigation is Bad for Business

There's a pattern that shows up on industrial websites over and over:?A big grid of stock photos on the homepage, intended to segment customers into target markets. Automotive. Industrial. Construction. Each one with its own image of a factory, machinery, or job site.

You know the ones? Square photo blocks arranged in a neat grid under Industries We Serve. Or maybe you've tucked them under Our Services, another common application. Here's a few examples I found in ten minutes of browsing. And, trust me, there are thousands more:

The Problems with Market Grids

Look, I understand why this pattern is tempting for digital marketing teams. You've got a lot to do, and this navigation doesn't feel out of place. It works without custom photography, doesn't need much content development, and it can be implemented easily. But this seemingly harmless choice is costing you customers.

Here's why it hurts more than it helps:

Wasting Prime Real Estate

Your homepage should be your best salesperson. Instead, you've given up valuable space to a huge submenu. No value propositions. No competitive advantages. Nothing that captures attention or drives action.

Looking Like Everyone Else

And I mean everyone. Those stock photos of factories and machinery? Even if you've managed to round up some original photos, they all blend into the same forgettable pattern that customers are trained to tune out. It's noise, not value.

Creating Visual Confusion

Should public transportation show a train or a bus? Should construction be a job site or CAD drawing? Are you talking to project managers or engineers? The category titles are clear and concise, but the images interfere with a quick decision.

Better Approaches

Remember those high school makeover movies where they take off someone's glasses and suddenly they're hot and popular? Let's do that here with some quick wireframes:

Alternative 1: Keep it Lean

A simple secondary navigation bar near the hero section keeps your industries front and center without overshadowing your value proposition. Easy access, no clutter.

Alternative 2: Lead with Results

Use industry tabs to preview key metrics and case studies. "Engineered for 1M+ cycles" beats a grid of stock photos every time.

Alternative 3: Focus on Customer Problems

Instead of market segments, organize around the engineering challenges you solve for customers across all industries. Show that you understand them, don't just say it.

Do these alternative approaches take more effort? Yes, absolutely. They require more thought, better content, and likely some custom web development. But that's exactly why they work – they show you're willing to go beyond the obvious solution to create real value.

Matt Everson helps manufacturers and other technical companies build websites that drive real business results. He is the founder and principal at Astuteo, a web design studio specializing in industrial B2B, and the creator of Industrial Site Design, a new (but expanding) collection of resources for helping teams build more effective industrial websites.