5 Common Website Navigation Mistakes You Might Be Making

5 Common Website Navigation Mistakes You Might Be Making

Convenience in website navigation is a key factor in a positive online user experience. As a business, your website serves as your main virtual space in the online world. A web designer in Toronto, Canada’s technological hub will usually suggest a modernized design with minimalist bars and buttons. However, you should also remember that functionality and intuitive navigation should still be prioritized.

First-time website creators will usually commit the mistake of making their page design too sleek and fancy, forgetting that they should cater to the audience’s experience as well. If your visitors won’t be able to easily find the content that they’re looking for with your navigation design, within seconds, they’ll likely exit and find another site, consequently lowering your search ranking, authority, and organic traffic.

If you want to boost your website’s online presence, you must consider important design factors. When creating a website, to avoid crucial mistakes, you should know the answer to the question “is web design and web development the same?”

Web design refers to how the aesthetic and functionality of the website components are planned out. Web development on the other hand is more focused on typing out the codes that will make the design work. To make your website a better virtual environment for your targeted audience, make sure to avoid the following mistakes:

  • Web convention deviation

Conventional web design often closely relates to how the human brain works. Intuitive and with a penchant for shortcuts, online visitors are more likely to engage with a website that allows them to find the content that they want in the fastest way possible.

When you’re creating your website codes and structures make sure to make it as “conventional” as possible. The term “conventional” can differ greatly depending on the online trends of your area or target audience.

By Western standards, this usually equates to certain elements such as logo placement and body hyperlink colour. The preferred logo placement is usually found on the top left of the page. And, in conventional web design, the logo is usually a clickable element that can redirect visitors to the homepage.

If you want to put it in the centre or the top right corner, make sure that it doesn’t affect the efficiency of navigation. And, if you plan on inserting any hyperlinks into your content body, make sure to change its font colour into a contrasting one so it doesn’t get lost in the mix. The best colour to go with is blue, and you can even underline it for more emphasis.

  • Vague label design

Website labels are what allow engagement between visitors and content. By having buttons and elements that are clear and concise, you’ll be able to easily guide your audience throughout the site.

If you’re selling Goyen in Canada, it’s important to label your products properly and this means, specifically. If the labels are too vague, it could confuse some of your visitors to frustration, which could greatly affect your organic traffic.

When it comes to designing your call-to-action (CTA) buttons and navigation bars, keep them as simple and easily recognizable as possible.

It’s also important to note that the design you’re aiming for is technically achievable. Because, most first-timers often think that the answer to the question “is web design and web development the same” is yes, which limits their website’s potential.

  • Lack of signifier

Signifiers refer to the quality of your website’s visual elements so that their assigned function is easy to recognize and understand. If the design is too abstract or simple that the actual meaning gets lost in translation, it may lead to click uncertainty among your visitors.

When the mouse hovers over a visual element, it should show whether it’s clickable or not. You may add in a tiny description and have the button enlarged when hovered upon. This way, readers will have an easier time navigating across your site.

  • False bottom problem

Spacing out your website elements in a flowing manner is important in web design. When visitors navigate across your site, they should not feel overwhelmed by endless blocks of text or overly large cluttered graphics.

These factors may lead them to leave right away, opting for a better-balanced layout. Some layout designs also have a false bottom problem, wherein the way the content is placed has too much space between them, causing the readers to think that there’s nothing more to the article.

To avoid this, large images should be properly cropped to avoid any spillage and bleeding to other website elements. Horizontal lines should also be avoided when separating sections in the website since it’s a stop signal for the brain. 

Negative space should also be properly utilized along with the proper placements of pop-up ads, so it doesn’t disturb the reading experience of your website visitors. Considering all these factors, you must know the answer to the question, “is a web design and web development the same” since you’ll need to coordinate both the technical and design aspects of your website development process to prevent these mistakes from happening.

  • Hidden navigation elements

Navigational devices should also be visible at all times. If you’re going for a minimalist design, hiding them conspicuously would only lower the quality of the user experience (UX). When designing a website make sure to make the navigation icons as clear and comprehensive as possible and compatible with all devices.

Whether your website is about vaginal rejuvenation in Toronto or construction materials in Alberta make sure to make your navigational settings accessible to your audience, because it can make or break their surfing experience.

Without an actual employee to help them browse or guide them through the navigation experience, the way your website’s system is designed, is an important factor that will determine if visitors will engage fully with your content.

When you’re constructing your page’s navigational settings and buttons, you must have enough technical knowledge to achieve an effective website design that serves its purpose. 

Beginners in website design often focus on the aesthetic factor only, which is a common mistake since it makes the site prone to errors and crashes, drastically reducing the quality of the online user experience.

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