A successful website balances strategy, usability, and functionality. Every decision – from the copy on your homepage to the speed of your mobile site – impacts your bottom line.
Here are 10 common pitfalls businesses face when working on a new website and how to avoid them. Full disclosure, we’ve been guilty of committing them in the past ourselves!
1️⃣ Unclear goals, expectations and scope
Define business objectives for the website (e.g. lead generation tool, a sales enabler, and/or first impressions, thought leadership or education, etc.), ideally inhouse. Then, create a detailed scope of work before starting the project with an external partner. At Hyphen we also assist our prospective clients with scope development (technical, brand, content, etc.).
2️⃣ Insufficient stakeholder and client involvement
Build a decision-makers matrix and understand not only how they use the website but what their business aims are and how a website supports them. And, do the same with your key customers. This is also something a vendor like Hyphen could help you with. Tip: when interviewing vendors, ask them about their research/ discovery process.
3️⃣ Prioritizing aesthetic over usability (UX/UI)
Conduct user research and develop wireframes and prototypes to test navigation and functionality to ensure your site addresses real customer needs. Use heatmaps to understand user behavior on your existing site and test usability with real customers before development.
4️⃣ Focus on copywriting and not content strategy
Copywriting is often left until after wireframes and design are finalized, which creates a lot of friction and ends up with web copy that’s generic and fails to address client pain points.
Ensure content planning is working with architecture design, and develops messaging that speaks to your target audience’s needs and is optimized for clarity, relevance, and action-oriented language.
5️⃣ Ignoring SEO until the end
Integrate SEO into the project from day one to maximize organic traffic opportunities. If you’re doing any kind of digital advertising, get them involved as early as the content team and ensure they work together. They’ll help to conduct keyword research early and integrate SEO into your content, structure, and technical setup.
6️⃣ Skipping analytics and tracking
Launching without tools to measure impact and continuous success post-launch is surprisingly overlooked by many organizations. Set up analytics tools (Google Analytics, Clarity for free) is the absolute minimum. Set up dashboards to monitor key metrics like bounce rate, conversion rate, traffic sources and other relevant insights, and use this data to optimize and drive continuous improvement.
7️⃣ Rushing the testing phase
Many websites are launched with untested features, broken links, slow-loading pages or design elements because of time pressures. Don’t rush your teams to launch a new website without performing rigorous QA (quality assurance) testing for functionality, bugs, load speed, and compatibility across browsers and devices. This takes longer than a day… sometimes weeks!
8️⃣ Overcomplicating the development process
One of the top requests we receive from clients is to ensure the backend of the website is easy to update without the help of a developer. For this, ensure to choose CMS wisely before! There are many flexible and scalable codes that are easy to update. We specialize in headless CMS and WordPress. If you do have custom code, document all customizations and ensure the backend is kept clean and organized. Have a lead developer that reviews all code and checks for items like this.
9️⃣ Poor project management
Missed deadlines, scope creep, and unclear accountability are a drag. In addition to setting clear project boundaries and managing changes with a structured process, we recommend asking your vendor what project management tools they use (e.g., Asana, Trello) and asking them to establish clear milestones with assigned timelines and expectations. They should lead regular review progress and address bottlenecks early. Hyphen handles this through a clearly organized Implementation Plan
🔟 Assuming your website is ‘done’ post-launch
Your website is a living, breathing piece of business success. Once the new site is launched, define a post-launch support team that will plan for regular updates, performance reviews, and content refreshes to keep your site relevant and secure.
What’s one thing you wish you’d known before starting your last website project?
Avoiding these website mistakes will save you precious time, headaches, and money while ensuring your site meets your business goals. Whether it’s defining clear objectives, integrating SEO early, or selecting the right CMS, a strategic approach to your website project will pay off.
Build a Website That Works for Your Business:
Our team specializes in creating websites that drive results. We’re here to guide you through every step of the process—from planning and design to post-launch support. Consider reaching out to us and we’d love to help you build a website that truly works for your business .