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Why a Website Fails to Perform?

Michael Henderson

May 14, 2008

So you finally got your website online and are waiting for sales to increase? But the wait seems to go on till eternity and excepting a few passer-bys now and then, you don’t really see any major traffic inflow.

If these are the symptoms that are plaguing you, then there might be something wrong with the website. As impossible it is to believe that the expensive website you just built will have some flaws, as true it might be.

Your website defines your corporate identity in the cyber world. It can save you a lot of time and effort to get information across to the customer. It can answer questions and performs vital tasks for you. All well and good, but it will have to rid itself from all the flaws.
Here are some reasons why websites fail to deliver desired results:

Website Objectives not defined

Some website try to do a whole lot of things do not have a strong aim or purpose. This makes the visitors landing on it all confused. They don’t know where to go or what to do.

Always assign a clear purpose to your website, whether it is a general information site, your company site or an e-commerce site.

Defining the purpose of your website gives a clear direction to your customers. Lead them where to go and what you want them to do. Use links like "Email for more information." and "Click here to sign up."

Unidentified Target Audience

Most sites do not identify their target audience. They just want to please everyone and in the bid, invite a lot of visitors but no customers.

Assigning a purpose to your site helps you identify your target audience. And by identifying your customers you can optimize your website to match their tastes and requirements.
Analyze the behavior of visitors. Are they are males or females, their age, their choices, habits and income. This will help you deliver exactly what your clients need. Thus you will attract visitors who are really interested in buying your products and services and your sales will boost.

Building for the Wrong Audience

Another very common mistake is building your website for the wrong audience. If you are catering to a mature audience, you will need to be more professional, whereas for a younger generation, you will have to make the site more lively and cheerful. Likewise you can’t afford to use technical content if you wish to rope in the general public, just like you can’t be generic if you are targeting professionals of the field. If you have to bring in all of them, make sure you content pleases everyone. You can have a generic content with links that lead to more detailed information.

Whatever the case be, never develop a site for a wrong audience.

Unmindful to Web Traffic Sources

There is no use of having heavy traffic that comes in hoards but gets you no business. Getting links from that not by far not relevant to the content on you site is completely useless. Because visitors will just leave in a matter of seconds when they realize they have landed on alien territory. Empty hits look good on the stats page but serve no good.

Underestimating the Competition

Some websites underestimate their competitors. This leads to the competition eating out of your customer pie.

Check out their sites and find out what your website lacks in their comparison. Grab some ideas and put them to use. Your target audience is searching the web for your product. Don't let your competition become more appealing.

Poor Site Communication and Inconsistency

Websites sometimes make the mistake of designing their pages in contrasting styles. When visitors move from one page to another, they feel as if they have landed some place new. It also hampers consistency and breaks their flow.

Your site should have a trademark style that adds to smooth navigations. Also the content on your website should be what your customers would want to see, and not what you want.

Outdated and Antiquated Site Features

Many sites keep on old and stale content till eternity. This gives visitors no reason to comeback. Rather it gives them a reason to stay away.

Scan your site for any old content and images and delete them. Also remove old links that go nowhere. Get in new information and update the site features like navigation systems and contact forms.

Keep in mind all these points and take care none of them are presents on your website.

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