First impressions happen in seconds—what impression is your brand giving? Professional and fun girl boss who’s always booked out? Or an amateur who just started last week and threw together a website because the “experts” said she had to have one?
Listen, no shade being thrown here! We started Duo Collective with a one-page website and had it for years. And it worked fine—it got the job done. But it wasn’t accurately reflecting who we were or who we wanted to be as business owners.
Your website isn’t just “online real estate” — it’s your credibility, positioning, and sales engine.
And here’s the hard truth: small website mistakes can quietly signal “hobby” instead of “expert.” And we know you’re an expert, so let’s go over these website mistakes and what to do instead.
1. Inconsistent Branding
Different fonts on every page, mismatched colors, low-resolution images, stock photos that don’t match your vibe… Court is over here cringing! You know the websites we’re talking about—the ones that were clearly the first version of a DIY attempt.
You might think you’re being fun and different, but you’re actually signalling a lack of clarity and professionalism. It makes your brand feel forgettable because nothing stands out, leaving it feeling confusing. The inconsistency in your branding undermines trust with your audience subconsciously.
Instead, you need to create defined brand guidelines for fonts, colors, and imagery style. Then never stray from it! Use consistent header styles and spacing, and invest in cohesive brand photography.
2. Weak or Confusing Messaging
You’ve heard “If you’re talking to everyone, you’re talking to no one,” right? Weak messaging like “Welcome to my website” headlines or vague taglines like “Helping you grow” aren’t specific enough to attract YOUR audience. Or maybe you’re talking more about yourself instead of proving you understand your audience.
If visitors don’t understand what you do within 5 seconds of landing on your website, they’re probably going to find someone else to work with. Confusion and vague messaging kill conversions by blurring your brand’s identity.
Lead with a clear value proposition—what makes you different from every other service provider out there? Use benefit-driven headlines so people understand right away what they’ll get out of working with you.
And don’t be afraid to sprinkle some personality in there! A lot of clients choose to work with us because they resonate with our fun and playful personalities.
3. Poor Website Navigation
If pages aren’t labeled clearly or are hard to find on your website, people will get frustrated and leave. Or if your navigation menu has a million pages linked or has too many dropdown layers with tons and tons of pages… It’s not a good experience. No one wants to dig to find what they need—they want it to be clear and easy to find.
Main navigation menus should have 5-7 items MAX. You can have another hamburger menu if you have other important pages you want to link to.
The pages need to be labeled clearly, too. This isn’t the time for cutesy names—save that for the headers on the page. Nav menu labels should be simple and straightforward.
4. Slow Page Speed
The biggest thing that slows down a website? Large, uncompressed images. This is especially true for photographers who want to show off their beautiful work.
Some other things that slow down a website are:
- Too many plugins
- Clunky page builders
- Excessive animations
When a website doesn’t load within two seconds, people are going to bounce. Google will start ranking you lower because frequent bounces signal that you aren’t providing value.
The easiest way to fix slow page speed is to compress your images before uploading them to your website. Use tools like Tinify or Compress PNG to reduce file size without sacrificing quality.
Not sure if your website is slow? Use PageSpeed Insights to find out!
5. No SEO Foundation
Now it’s Abbey’s turn to cringe! A website without SEO foundations (meta titles and descriptions, internal linking, keyword strategy, blog, etc.) means your traffic will always stay stagnant or nonexistent. Even if you have a beautiful website, without SEO, no one will be able to find it. You’ll end up relying on social media for traffic (and we don’t think anyone wants that!)
Take some time to optimize each page for one primary keyword. You’ll turn your website from an online brochure to a lead generator.
Not sure where to start with SEO? Check out our DIY course, SEO on Tap!
6. Outdated or Broken Elements
Outdated and broken elements are always very clear and obvious website mistakes. It makes us think the business might not be open anymore or that the owner isn’t detail-oriented, when in fact neither could be true! These little things could cost you inquiries without you even realizing it.
What it looks like:
- 404 errors
- Broken contact forms
- Old copyright year
- Expired promotions
Your website is one of the most important things to maintain. If it’s set up and working properly, it works for you 24/7! Put it in your calendar to do quarterly website audits. This includes testing forms, checking for broken links, updating offers or pricing, and removing outdated content.
If it’s in your calendar, you’re more likely to do it!
7. Cluttered Design & Too Much Information
We hate to see a cluttered website design. Long, never-ending paragraphs, too many colors, competing calls to action… It’s overwhelming as a consumer and as a designer!
Too much going on is cognitive overload—your brain doesn’t know what to look at or focus on. We know visitors tend to skim website pages, so if your website isn’t easy to skim, they won’t fully understand what you do. It just feels completely chaotic when the real goal is to make things easy for your audience.
Here’s how to fix it:
- Use white space intentionally.
- Break text into smaller sections.
- One clear CTA per section.
- Prioritize clarity over decoration.
8. No Social Proof
We don’t see this website mistake too often, but when we do, it’s obvious.
- No testimonials
- No case studies
- No recognizable logos
- No data or results
- No examples
You’re basically asking people to “just trust you” 😅 and they don’t. They hesitate. They want to hear from real people who have worked with you.
So what can you do about it?
- Add testimonials throughout pages (not just one page)
- Include specific results
- Showcase transformation stories
And if you’re brand new and don’t have any of this yet, it’s okay! After every client project, ask for a testimonial. Soon, you’ll have a bunch to choose from to showcase on your website.
9. No Clear Call to Action
Do you have a “contact me if interested” buried at the bottom of your home page? Or multiple conflicting CTAs, so your audience doesn’t actually know what to do next? Or maybe you don’t have a next step at all?!
Yikes. You could be losing leads by not being clear about the next step on your website.
Include one primary CTA per page. After reading through your services, you probably want them to inquire. After reading a blog post, maybe you offer a freebie to get them on your email list. Make buttons clear and action-oriented so readers actually do what you want them to do.
Examples:
- Book Your Strategy Call
- View Packages
- Start Your Project
- Listen to the Podcast
- Download for Free
10. Not Mobile-Optimized
It’s no secret that mobile optimization is super important, with people spending more time than ever on their phones. A website that isn’t optimized for mobile is outdated.
Here’s what a bad mobile experience looks like:
- Text cut off or too small to read.
- Buttons are too small.
- Images aren’t resizing properly.
It hurts your user experience and SEO. Google prioritizes mobile-first indexing, which means it looks at the mobile version of your website FIRST, before desktop!
Does the mobile version of your website accurately represent your business? Search your website on your phone and find out!
11. DIY Design Without Strategy
A design without a strategy might look pretty, but it doesn’t perform. Don’t build a website purely for aesthetics—that’s not the point of your virtual storefront. The goal is to convert readers into clients. A website without a strategy doesn’t support long-term growth and feels like a starter business.
Before you start picking colors or fonts, think about the strategy. Map out goals and how you want people to navigate through your website. Build it with SEO and conversions in mind, then add the pretty branding elements to make it pop.
How to Know If Your Website Is Hurting Your Brand
If you’re making any of these website mistakes, you might still have time to fix them before they really impact your business.
But if any of these things are happening, your website is probably the cause:
- You’re not getting consistent inquiries.
- People ask basic questions that your site should answer.
- You hesitate to send people to your website.
- You rely completely on social media.
Your Website Should Elevate You, Not Undermine You
Professional brands don’t leave details to chance. Your website is meant to educate and convert your audience so you can focus on providing the best services to your clients.
Your website should:
- Communicate authority
- Build trust
- Guide visitors clearly
- Generate leads consistently
If your website feels “fine” but not powerful, it might be time for a strategic refresh. Reach out to us about our website and branding services!
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