Though they may be common sense items, sometimes even the easiest things can get overlooked. Simply put, these are seven mistakes to correct or avoid altogether.

1. Not including your contact information
   Your contact information should be very prominent on your website. If visitors are having to go through three different navigation bars and then need to scroll to come across it, you’ve lost out on a large customer base. Make it noticeable on the home page or at least link up to the home page.
   
   SMB DigitalScapee found that out of 1 million SMB websites in the U.S., 60% were missing either a toll-free or local telephone number on the home-page. Think that’s scary? Even more staggering, about 75% were missing an email contact link on the homepage. Give your clients or potential clients a means to reach out to you.
   
   
   
2. Not having a search bar
   Think of it this way. More than likely when you visit a new town, mall, country, etc. you require some sort of map to show you the directions to your desired location. Well when customers visit your website they are being thrown into the unknown. While you and your employees may be very familiar with its layout, others will be clueless.
   
   Establish a website search bar so visitors can easily navigate to what they’re looking for. Most won’t be willing to search through several pages to find what they’re seeking out. Even though the location of the data may be obvious to you, everyone thinks differently. Keep it easy.
   
   
   
3. Poor readability
   Always keep it simple when it comes to colors and fonts. Do not go for hard-to-read artsy fonts or colors like blue text on black backgrounds because these can be confusing or altogether impossible for some to understand. Think clean and easy, it often comes across more professional anyways.
   
   
   
4. Bad navigation
   A good rule to follow is to keep your navigation consistent across your pages. Navigation that changes from page to page can overwhelm visitors and drive them away. Keep the navigation simple and obvious for even those unfamiliar with your industry. Make sure you include all of the staples such as About, Contact, FAQ, Login, etc. so people aren’t having to avidly search to find them.
   
   
   
5. Not enough white space
   A lot of businesses get so caught up in relaying every last detail about their business that the end result is a complex disaster of text. White space does not mean you must fill it in. Simplify your content and convey only what is absolutely necessary. If the page looks too cluttered visitors will not want to read any of it, essentially leading to them bouncing to another site. Keep it visually clean and appealing.
   
   
   
6. Not being optimized for mobile
   With mobile users surpassing desktop users by next year, you do not want to have a website that’s not compatible on mobile devices. That will cost you a lot of clients. Currently sources have that over one third of searches are coming from mobile devices. Invest in a website that takes mobile users into account. Better yet, try to implement the newer responsive design websites so your site will remain consistent across platforms and adapt to different mobile sizes automatically. This type of website should last for a long time.
   
   
   
7. Music/video audio on home page (auto start)/loading time
   This one is pretty obvious but lots of people are still doing it. Stay away from video and audio on your home page. Implementing video to showcase your products or services is great…just not on your home page. There are multiple reasons for this.
   
   When entering a new website the first thing users do is stop the video or music. They have just been introduced to your company, but without having any time to look around or understand your services/products you have blasted advertising material at them. It is important to consider it from their opinion. Think also what you would do if you were in a quiet environment and all of a sudden loud music was blaring at you just because you clicked on a photo. Most responses would be of embarrassment and immediate exit from the source.
   
   Another thing to consider is that adding in larger files such as videos, music, or high quality photos slows your page loading time down big time. With studies proving most people won’t wait more than 2-3 seconds for a page to load its important you do not overload your home page. Keep it simple, clean, and informative.