Mistakes you should avoid when building a website
Sigma School
20th August 2023
Once you have learnt the programming languages of website development, you might feel inclined to jump right into building websites. But in order to build a website that is functional and provides users a great experience, there are many considerations to look out for.
Here are some mistakes you need to avoid when building a website:
Before you start writing code for your website, you should have a plan. Focus on a particular goal and ask yourself what is the purpose of this website? Whether it is for a hobby or to include into your technical portfolio, you should be clear of what you want to do before diving in to writing the code.
You should also explore the many websites out there by checking out other developer’s projects and websites of existing brands to get some inspiration on the features and functionalities you would like to include in yours.
Once you have identified the purpose of your website, write down your plans and create a wireframe that illustrates how you would like your website to look like. This includes the website layout, buttons, texts, images and where you would like these components to be. Your plan should be polished enough to achieve its purpose and can be fine-tuned later on. As building any type of software is a continuous process, you will have to do corrections and build more functions along the way.
One of the most important aspects of building a website is to ensure its privacy and security. The last thing you would want is your user’s data to fall into the wrong hands. We recommend utilizing a HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) as it encrypts data sent between servers and browsers to help ward off cyber attacks – typically to steal data.
You should also ensure all your code that includes widgets and plugins are up to date. These vulnerabilities can be exploited by hackers to gain access to systems and sensitive information from websites. Hence why you should keep your code updated to prevent potential security risks.
As smartphones have become a necessity in this current age, users often use their mobile devices to surf the web. So, if your website is not responsive on mobile you won’t be providing your users a great experience. Your website needs to be adjusted according to the many types of devices such as a phone and tablet in order to provide a consistent experience as this will affect users retention rate on your website. This also applies to font styles and size. Mobile responsiveness is also a key requirement when it comes helping your website rank better in search engines due to SEO (Search Engine Optimization).
Your website needs to be able to accommodate to users who what sensory, mobility and even cognitive impairments – it needs to provide an equal experience to all users. Do your images have alt texts? Can your HTML be read by screen readers? Does your video contain captions for users with hearing disabilities? These are all factors you need to be aware of and to include the necessary accessibility features to allow all users to use your website.
Building your own website requires a lot of thought before getting started. There are many components that you need to look out for in order to produce a website that is not only functional but also provides users a good experience.
If you would like to build your own website and learn more about coding, check out our Complete Software Development Programme that will teach you all the ins and outs of frontend, backend and even mobile app development.
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