5 Most Common Mistakes I See People Making On Their Websites & How to Fix Them
As a website designer a big part of my job is auditing websites to see what they do well and what could be improved. In fact, I have probably audited the best part of 50+ websites at this point, which means I have been able to spot some common trends.
This blog post breaks down some of the most common mistakes I see when auditing websites and how to fix them. That way, you can really leverage the website you have and hopefully make more sales.
I have specifically written this for service providers rather than product based website owners e.g. coaches, consultants, social media managers, etc… So if you offer a service to your clients, then you’re in the right place.
*Please be aware that this blog post contains affiliate links. That simply means if you decide to purchase after clicking on the link, I will receive a small payment at no extra cost to you. I only share affiliate links for products/services I personally use and love.
Mistake #1 - Pages without any call to actions (CTAs)
One of the most common and the biggest mistakes I see business owner’s making with their websites is not including enough call to actions (CTAs) across their website.
The worst mistake? A page with no call to actions at all.
A call to action can take many forms but most commonly they are buttons, links or images with hyperlinks. Some common text to include on a CTA would be ‘find out more’ ‘buy now’ or ‘get in touch’ for example.
The point of CTAs is to invite users to take the next step, keep them on your website for as long as possible and to direct them to your website’s main goal.
Your main goal could be to fill out your contact form, buy a product or join a waitlist. Whatever the goal is, every CTA should be bringing the user closer to that goal. This is called created a user journey. For example, your blog post may have a link to your services page which may then link to your contact form.
When a page has no call to actions, it is unclear what the user needs to do next so they are more likely to click off of your website altogether. Of course, we don’t want to user to leave our website without completing our goal (or downloading a free resource, more on that below,) so we need to make sure that every single page on our websites have at least one CTA.
How to make sure users stay on your website for as long as possible?
There are lots of opportunities for you to keep readers in your world for as long as possible.
One example could be to include a thank you page when someone downloads a freebie or completes your contact form. This thank you page could include a CTA to check out your portfolio or read your latest blog post.
Another example could be creating blog posts from your FAQs which you can link to from different pages on your website.
CTAs don’t have to only be “get in touch” or “find out more about my services”. They can vary depending on the page and the context of the page. For example, if you have written a blog post which is not directly related to your services, saying “book my services now” probably doesn’t make much sense. Instead, you could link to a blog post which is more relevant to your services with a “More blog posts you might be interested in” section at the bottom of your post. This will eventually lead the reader to your services, but you aren’t forcing it in a blog post which isn’t relevant.
Mistake #2 - No way to stay in touch when someone is not ready to buy
While we always want to be directing people towards our end goal by using CTAs, some people simply are not ready to buy yet. We don’t want these people to click off our website and forget about us, we want a way to stay in touch with them and nurture them until they are ready to work with us.
That’s why it is super important to provide a way of staying in touch with you. This could be a clear CTA to follow you on your favourite social media platform, sign up to your newsletter or download a lead magnet to encourage them onto your email list.
A lead magnet is a free resource which people can download in exchange for their email address and subscribing to your newsletter. Email marketing is one of the most effective way of capturing potential leads and is nurturing them until their ready buy. But no one wants to opt-in to be sold to. That’s why we create lead magnets which are so juicy, so no-brainer that people can’t wait to sign up.
What makes a good lead magnet?
A quality lead magnet that actually captures leads has to be three things:
Quality - Quality is important because it should reflect how amazing it is to work with you. Don’t just create anything, stick it online and hope that people will buy from you. You want your lead magnet to showcase how amazing you are.
Desirable - In order for people to be willing to give you their email, your freebie needs to be a no-brainer. What do your dream clients ACTUALLY want?
Relevant - The end goal of your freebie is to eventually make sales. You therefore need to create a lead magnet that is RELEVANT to your offers and services.
Are you a coach looking for lead magnet ideas? Take a read of of this blog post of freebie ideas to help you land more clients.
Below is my own free resource, the website project planner, which you can see as an example. It is a guide I usually give to paying clients to help them prepare when working together, but give away as a free resources for people working on their own websites. You can click the link below to see my opt-in page and thank you page if you decide to download my website project planner.
Mistake #3 - Short services pages which don’t sell the transformation of your offers
Another super common mistake is a services page on your website which is short and provides little detail. Your services page is the page that people go to when they are ready to buy from you. Those readers are super close to reaching out, so your services page needs to tempt them to do so.
Therefore, your services page needs to include enough details to help readers to feel seen, understood and safe.
How do we do that? By showing the reader that we understand what they are currently experiencing, we know what their goals and desires are, and that our offer is the solution to those things.
We can paint a picture with our words, showing them the transformation they deeply desire.
The opposite of this would be to introduce our services super briefly, create a shopping-list style page which simply lists the features of your offers and asks them to buy. Instead, take them on a journey. Relate to them, show that you know what they are going through and make them feel safe.
The best way to make them feel safe? Show that people have gone before them (testimonials) and overcome any objections they may have by providing important details and answering FAQs.
What should you include on your services page?
There is no point making your services page long for the sake of it, you want it to help readers feel more comfortable buying from you. Therefore what should you include on your services pages?
A catchy headline that clearly explains what you do and who it is for.
A introduction which relates to what the reader is currently experiencing and shows you know their pain points.
A section which paints the picture of the dreamy future the reader wants to create. What are their goals and what do your services help them to achieve?
A simple introduction to your offer which positions your services as the solution to their problems and goals.
A breakdown of what the offer includes.
Client testimonials (videos and pictures of past clients are even better!)
Frequently asked questions which overcome objections
Lots of CTAs throughout to book/buy/get in touch
Example services page before vs after
AFTER
This is a screenshot taken from after we worked together on Emma’s coaching website. It includes much more detail, FAQs, testimonials and describes the transformation potential clients will go on, making it much better at really selling her services.
BEFORE
This before screenshot was taken from my client Emma's previous services page. It is quite short and lacks details that the reader needs in order to make an informed buying decision.
Mistake #4 - Lots of long chunks of text and long paragraphs.
You probably already know that people have short attention spans and most users tend to skim-read websites to find the information they need.
We therefore want to make it as easy as possible for them to find the most important information they need to know, so it doesn’t get lost in long paragraphs.
Instead, you want to make your text as skim-readable as possible, and as easy to digest as possible. We can do this by making paragraphs shorter and splitting our text into distinct sections which are typically separated using images and different colour backgrounds.
How to make sure your website is easy to ready?
When it comes to writing easy to read copy and making your website skim-readable, here are some of my top-tips:
Use subheadings throughout your page so people can scan the page
Use short paragraphs as readers simply won’t make it to the end of super long paragraphs
Remove unnecessary words like “really”, “very”, “amazing” etc…
Use bullet point lists where necessary
Split long pieces of text into multiple sections with different colour backgrounds
Mistake #5 - Not being compliant with privacy laws
I know I know, privacy laws are BORING but they are super important.
Most of the websites I audit have skipped on this super important detail which could get them in trouble with the law: Privacy Policies.
It is a legal requirement for every website owner to disclose how they use reader’s data which is most commonly done through a privacy policy.
A privacy policy lets readers know what you plan on doing with their data and who you plan on sharing it with.
You may be thinking “but I don’t share their data with anyone” which is probably NOT true. For example, if someone fills out a contact form, your website host e.g. Squarespace will likely have access to that information or store it. You might also add that person’s email to an email list, in which case you are also sharing that data with your email marketing software (e.g. convertkit or mailchimp).
It is also important to note that if you have customers who are based across different countries, it is a requirement that you comply with the privacy laws of THEIR country. For example, in the UK we have the data protection act, but in the EU there is GDPR and in the state of California there is the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).
It all sounds confusing but don’t let this scare you. There are tools which can help!
How to ensure you are compliant with privacy laws across the world?
The solution? I recommend a tool called Termageddon to all of my clients and it is a tool I personally use in my own business. (You can get 10% off your first year using the code ‘FREYA’ at checkout.) Termageddon is a policy generator which creates privacy policies, terms and conditions and cookie policies which automatically update as laws change. You simply complete their questionnaire and copy and paste a piece of code into your website. It’s super straightforward and means you don’t need to worry about breaking international privacy laws or updating your policies as laws change.
Want to avoid making mistakes with your business website?
If you’re someone who wants your website to be a powerful tool for generating leads in your business, then you might want to consider a personalised website audit.
This blog post covers just 5 of the common mistakes I see people making with their websites, but there are many more and many ways a website could be better used to its full potential.
If you would like to get a personalised audit of your website so you can find out what is working well and what could be improved, you should take a look at my Power Hour service. It includes a personalised website audit and an hour long call to discuss the findings in more detail, so you can get your questions answered.
Take a look at my Power Hour service if you would like to find out more details and have a professional audit of your website.
