Internet Marketing Tutorial

The top ten biggest mistakes that website owners are making today

There's not many people out there we happen to have the perfect website. The vast majority of websites out there all have flaws of one sort or another. But have you ever wondered what are the biggest mistakes that website owners are making today?

In this free internet marketing tutorial we're going to run you through what we happen to believe are the top ten biggest mistakes that website owners are making today. In using the term “biggest mistakes” we are talking about the mistakes which are causing the most amount of damage to website owners today. All of the mistakes mentioned are extremely common and they are spoiling literally millions of otherwise good websites.

If you are a website owner and you are making any of the mistakes mentioned in our tutorial then perhaps it's time for a rethink. If you are thinking about starting up a website then you really ought to pay close attention to this information.

So, here are the top ten biggest mistakes:

10. Overcomplicated forms
Information: When people visit your website they absolutely will not want to spend lots of time filling out your forms. If you have any forms on your website or you're thinking of adding any forms to your website at all then you should make those forms as simple as possible. That means you should aim to have a small number of fields and you should do your best to make the process of filling out those forms as quick, easy and painless as possible. Put simply - Stop asking for information that you do not need!

9 . Becoming too artistic
Information: When you're designing your website you should try to become somewhat unemotional and logical in your approach. You should avoid treating website design as some kind of mystical art form. Too many website owners waste time and energy trying to make their websites look like fantastic, original works of art when really, they should be focussing on other things. Remember, website design is not about building websites that look completely original and awe inspiring. Consider how some of the most successful websites in the world, like Amazon, have very minimalist designs with small, non-intrusive logos ...and still enjoy massive success!

8. No clear calls to action
Information: On your website you should have at least two very clear and powerful calls to action. We sometimes call these primary and secondary actions. Your primary action is the thing that you would really like your website visitors to do once they've looked at your website. You might want them to buy a product or fill out a quote request form. Your secondary action is the action that you would like your visitor to do if they do not opt for your primary action. Secondary actions are usually less obtrusive than primary actions. Examples might include; calling a telephone number, booking a callback, joining a discussion forum or recommending your website to a friend. Too many websites are being ruined by having no clear calls to action. So, when you're building your website we would advise you to think very carefully about what calls to action you are going to send out to your visitors.

7. Too much focus on the homepage
Information: Far too many website owners spend too much time focussing on tweaking their homepage and neglecting other, perhaps more important areas of their website. It's a very common mistake and it can spoil your chances of having a successful website.

6. Poor text
Information: It's a simple flaw that's very easy to fix but as time goes by more and more website owners appear to be adopting the belief that proper writing is not important. We disagree. We believe that it's imperative to have proper, well written text on your website. This absolutely does matter and those of you who neglect this aspect of your website are setting yourselves up for failure.

5. Trying to reinvent the wheel
Information: An alarming amount of website owners appear to be determined to rewrite the rules on how websites are built or how users of the internet behave. Unorthodox ideas like doing away with the top navigation bar or having oversized Flash animations on the homepage should be avoided at all costs. Instead you should stick to tried and tested designs, concepts and ideas that are working for other people who are enjoy success on the web. We're not saying that you should steal other ideas but we are saying that you are doomed to fail if you are determined to build a website that is radically different from anything else out there – in terms of design and/or functionality.

4. Focus is too broad
Information: This is a well documented marketing concept which is as valid in the offline world of business as it is here on the internet. If you are starting up any business, online or offline, then you should try to make the focus of your business as narrow as possible. Your goal should be to find niche markets which are in need of a particular type of product or service.

3. Violation of the Three Sacred Questions
Information: When people visit your website they should instantly discover (1) what you do, (2) why people should hire (or buy from) you and (3) what they (your website visitors) should do next to take your relationship to the next stage. If your website fails to reveal this information immediately then you have a big problem.

2. Stupid, deluded ideas
Information: Too many people appear to have delusions about building a website which will somehow change the world or change the way people work, rest or play. Certainly, there are a few seemingly outlandish ideas which have became roaring success stories on the internet. Ebay is a good example. Sadly however, there are more lottery winners in the world than people who have became rich thanks to a radical and outlandish idea that they've had for a website. Isn't that a shame?

1. No website maintenance
Information: Remember, when you eventually launch your website that is only the beginning. You've got to keep working on your website and making it better and better. Your search engine optimisation efforts should be ongoing. You should constantly be looking for ways to improve your website. You should constantly be interested in how people are behaving when they visit your website. Far too many website owners are launching perfectly well designed websites and then abandoning them. It's a path to certain failure and we believe it is the single most damaging mistake that website owners are making today.

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