Before we discuss myths, here’s an honest truth: The digital presence of your new business, product or campaign might be bolstered by ads, social media posts and articles on trade websites and Medium and Substack, but it is essentially anchored by your website.
This is why the website design myths and misconceptions that business owners believe in can hamper their brand’s presence. Let’s dive into some of them today.
Myth 1: It’s all about creating a good-looking website.
The initial impression often leads us to believe that visual appeal holds the utmost significance in making a website stand out. However, unraveling the myths surrounding UX design, UI design, and design trends sheds light on the true essence of navigability and user experience.
For instance, debunking the myth of website design, it becomes evident that aesthetics alone do not guarantee success. Instead, the focus should be on answering crucial questions: Can your visitors easily find the products or services they seek? Does your website deliver relevant information? Is the content structured to align with the consumer’s journey?
When these essential elements are overlooked, the visual allure of a website becomes secondary. The key lies in understanding the web design mythology and prioritizing user experience, ensuring that visitors can effortlessly navigate and find value in your online presence.
Myth 2: The more features, the better the website.
One of the common website design myths is the inclusion of excessive and unnecessary features that do not align with the website’s objective. While some may see these quirky touches as appealing, they can actually hinder the functionality of the website. It’s important to focus on the essential aspects of website design that serve the purpose and avoid falling into the trap of common misconceptions.
For instance, adding an opening screen that plays before the homepage reveal can be interesting but can affect loading time and cause people to leave the website too early. Similarly, while pop-ups can be useful in some situations, too often they can be distracting and can cause your visitor to overlook other more important information.
Recommended Read: Branding vs Social media marketing: Know the difference
Myth 3: Online stores run themselves.
A lot of novice eCommerce entrepreneurs believe that setting up a storefront is as easy as A,B, C. Well, with the variety of new platforms and plug-ins available today, it certainly does feel that way. And yet, it’s not that simple.
For starters, have you looked at the cost of your eCommerce service providers? Which one offers you the features you need at a cost that you can carve out of your sales? Which payment gateway offers secure transactions at a percentage fee that you can afford?
Which option is built to scale with your business, while also offering integrations with other vendors and also a certain degree of independence when it comes to design and layout? And most importantly, who will be adding and updating your products on a regular basis?
All things considered, setting up and running an online store requires some amount of strategic forecasting, as well as a bit of grunt work.
Myth 4: As web evolves, we don’t need to worry about security.
Agreed, web 1.0 had a lot more security glitches than we have now. However, customer data is still vulnerable in the era of web 2.0, especially if your website has social media integrations and other third-party integrations for payment gateways and the like.
That’s why HTTPS protocols and up-to-date SSL certificates are vital for every business website and improve customer confidence. Besides, web 3.0, along with the rise of the metaverse, creates a new set of security issues, so we predict your investments in digital security going up
Myth 5: Your website will rank on the first page of Google Search from day one.
Nothing could be further from the truth, unless your company is the only one in a super-niche category (and if so, you would not be able to find many people searching for this category without a bit of marketing effort from your side).
The fact is, all new businesses struggle to get their website to the top of search results. Developing content rich in long-tail keywords, analysing visitor data to modify SEO strategy, building domain authority, getting backlinks – none of this is quick or easy work. Dispelling common misconceptions about SEO and design, as well as debunking image optimization myths, is crucial for successful online presence.
But one thing we can agree on is that it’s vital to start the process on the right note, and as soon as possible. Ensure your website has its SEO foundations down pat, right from on-page SEO to correct indexing to keyword-based content. Make sure your website is optimised to get on the first page with the help of these three simple SEO tips.
Myth 6: Building a website is expensive and time-consuming.
This is a common misconception we encounter among most clients, and it impacts their launch strategies. For instance, many clients take the decision to run a business without a website in the initial stages, because they fear that they don’t have the resources to design and host a website. Or they may decide to run their blog from Medium or Substack only instead of creating their own website as well.
The reality is a bit more nuanced. Yes, a website can be expensive and time-consuming, but not if you develop it in stages. If a website with a homepage, product pages & shopping functionality and a blog are all you need at the moment, that can be developed without a huge initial outlay.
The other features you need can be added as your business evolves. For instance, a page for case studies may be useful for your business only after it has been active for a few months at least, so it can be addd in phase two of your website development project.
By breaking free from these misconceptions about pre-made templates and one-page designs, you can harness the power of SEO and visitor analytics.
Our recommendation? To break free of all these myths, get in touch with us to see how we can develop a purpose-built and fully functioning website for you.
This piece was collaboratively written by multiple members of the We Think North team, bringing you perspectives from across the branding, marketing, content and tech verticals.