Problems could occur on a website at any time, ruining its usability and function. And when functionality goes out the window, so do sales. These problems could include anything from slow page load to broken links as well as poor optimization for mobile use.
(Pixabay / geralt)
The following are common problems that can hamper a website and what you can do to fix them.
Sluggish page load
Nobody has time for a slow-loading site. According to kissmetrics.com, 47% of consumers expect a web page to load in 2 seconds or less. If your site takes too long, your potential customer will leave. And why shouldn’t they? Customers can often get comparable products or information elsewhere.
I recommend two tools to help you troubleshoot your page speed issues.
Both sites are free and offer a wealth of insight to improve your page load.
Inconsistent URLs
There are so many URL variations that a domain can use.
- com
- utahmarketers.com
- http://utahmarketers.com
- http://www.utahmarketers.com
- https://utahmarketers.com
- https://www.utahmarketers.com
Having your site consistently load the same url structure can lessen the number of requested items that your website needs to figure out as it loads. Additionally, when websites have more than one URL variation, Google will choose the best one on behalf of users, potentially sending them to the variation that you don’t prefer. Make sure that your website uses a uniform domain format to avoid this.
W3C markup validation breaches
The World Wide Web Consortium has its own markup validation service to ensure that all websites are compliant with consistent standards. This helps ensure that a website loads consistently across varying browsers and devices. If your website is backed by poor coding and runs afoul of these standards, it could detract from other factors that are important in your website’s ranking.
Non-functioning links
Broken links will frustrate users and terminate engagement quickly. And when engagement is lost, so is the sale.
If you’re using WordPress, use a plugin like Broken Link Checker to ensure that this is not a problem on your site.