5 User Experience Mistakes That Are Sabotaging Your Website

1. Loading Times Can Make or Break You

In the age of instant gratification, patience is a virtue that nobody has time for—especially online. 

If your site loads slower than a sloth doing yoga, guess what? You’ve lost a customer. A slow website not only tests the limits of your visitors’ patience but also their loyalty. Remember, every second counts, and with about 85.5% of users ready to abandon a slow-moving website, can you really afford to be the internet equivalent of a snail?

Pro Tip: Boost your site’s loading speed by optimizing your images, streamlining your code, and considering a faster hosting service. Tools like Google PageSpeed Insights can provide specific recommendations to reduce your site’s load time. Remember, the lighter your site, the faster it flies.

2. No One Likes Aggressive Website Tactics 

Pushy Much?

Nothing screams “We’re desperate!” like a barrage of pop-ups, pop-unders, and lightbox overlays begging users to subscribe, buy, or just click on something. While you think you’re cleverly maximizing ad views, your audience is installing ad blockers as fast as they can. 

Pro Tip: Dial back the desperation. Limit pop-ups to one per visit and ensure they offer real value instead of just begging for clicks. Consider timing them to appear as users show intent to exit rather than bombarding them right off the bat. Make it worth their while, and they might just stick around.

3. Oh Snap, Your Site is Broken

There is nothing quite like a broken website to boost your bounce rates, right? 

Whether it’s a sneaky JavaScript error or a page that mysteriously disappeared, if your site isn’t working, your visitors won’t stick around to send a search party. They’ll just blame your brand. User error? Sure, blame the victim. Bugs? Fix them before they bite you back. 

The bottom line: A broken site leads to a broken relationship.

Pro Tip: Regularly audit your site for issues. Use tools like Google’s Broken Link Checker Extension to find and fix dead links and test your site across different devices and browsers to ensure compatibility. If you can’t do it yourself, get your website audited for free from Breezy Sites.  

4. User Confusion = User Frustration 

If users can’t easily find what they’re looking for on your site, they’ll leave—end of story. 

Confusing navigation setups are a prime offender in the realm of bad user experiences. Menus that resemble puzzle games, links that lead to nowhere, or a layout that changes as often as the weather are surefire ways to ensure users click away faster than you can say “404 Error.”

Pro Tip: Simplify your navigation by organizing your menu logically and labeling sections clearly. Add a search bar and breadcrumbs to help users find their way around easily. Conduct usability tests with your target audience to identify and fix navigational issues. Remember, a more straightforward navigation leads to a better user experience.

5. Your Site is a Hot Mess and a Visual Catastrophe

Is your website’s design a relic from the early 2000s? 

Does it feature a dizzying array of psychedelic colors that would make a disco ball look tame?

Or maybe it has a navigation menu that’s more complicated than a Rubik’s Cube? 

Poor design choices—like autoplay videos, confusing icons, or text requiring a magnifying glass—can cause online users to quickly click that “X” button. Your website should guide and engage, not perplex and repel. A visually appealing website is not just a luxury; it’s a necessity for attracting and retaining customers.

Pro Tip: To improve a user’s experience, streamline your design. Simplify the color scheme, ensure text readability with appropriate sizes, and stick to a clean, modern aesthetic that reflects your brand without overwhelming your users.