I'm having my website re-designed, what mistakes should I avoid?

10 WEBSITE MISTAKES TO AVOID:

1. Using visitor counters. Most visitors don’t care how many other people have visited your site. And if the counter number is low, this can drive people away from your site because they might think you don’t offer a quality service or product.

2. Using long sentences. If a reader has to try to remember the beginning of the sentence by the time they finally get to the end of it, more than likely, they will miss the whole point of the sentence.

3. Having spelling and grammar mistakes. We all have made typing mistakes, but please spell & grammar check your content before you publish it.

4. Using background music. It can be quite a distraction and will run people right off your site.

5. Using inconsistent page layouts. The navigation bar, colors, fonts, links and overall theme should be consistent on all pages, otherwise the site just seems confusing, and the message will be missed.

6. Forgetting to prominently display your phone number & email address on every web page.

7. Having a barrage of banners – This will just make your site look busy and cheap.

8. Using busy background wallpaper – This just detracts from the message of the site & the pages.

9. Not telling people exactly what your business does – Never leave people guessing. Right on the home page, tell people what you do.

10. Having old information – If you still have 'Latest News' information up from 2008 or early 2009, it’s not good. Especially in this economy, if your website information is outdated, people will wonder if you are still in business.

And remember....
YOUR BRAND IS YOUR STORY. GET YOURS OUT THERE.