6 Ways to Make a Bad Website

Photo courtesy stephanaldrich of Morguefile.com

If you want to create a website that actually communicates to your audience, encourages the intended response, and represents your brand well then just do the opposite of these tips:

1. Throw away any plans. And, by the way, who needs a stinkin' creative brief? Just start "designing." It's not the content that counts. It's all about the "cool" factor.
2. And on the subject of content, don't worry about spellin', grammer, and structure. Who cares what you have to say?
3. Stay away from a process. Just let the ideas "flow." And make sure to use pretty colors too. Using a process makes outcomes too methodical and predictable. Hey, a little excitement never hurt anybody. (But maybe some business goals.)
4. Learn to move and reword your navigation frequently. Hey, make it fluid. Don't let them get used to your navigational structure. Keep your audience guessing. Consistency is for the birds.
5. Eliminate helpful graphics, because visitors came to read your information. You don't want graphics breaking up long pages of copy. Granted, graphics can enhance the reading experience online, and they are needed according to the purpose of the site. But, you don't have a plan anyway, so you don't even know what your audience wants. So, make 'em read.
6. Add plenty of meaningless animation and graphics instead. Distractions are good. Keep the site hopping with flashing ads and banners so that your readers will leave in a timely fashion. Hey, do you really want them hanging out at your site?

If you avoid these tips, your website just might be interesting.