You might have the greatest content on the web, but do you find that your audience simply isn’t growing the way you planned? You may unknowingly be sabotaging the growth of your website. We take a look at 4 things that put your readers off returning to your site.

Too many ads

If your page is plastered with more ads than a Formula 1 car then don’t expect your readers to stick around for very long. That’s not to say that you can’t have ads on your site, just don’t let them get in the way of your content and buttons. Earning pennies on a mistaken click is not worth it if you lose a reader forever.

If you are looking to kill off your readership quickly, you may find adverts that automatically play audio will do the trick.

Never reply to comments

Your readers are taking the time out of their lives to leave their thoughts on your website. The least you can do is to say thank you. If your readers have a different point of view then don’t come down on them too hard. An open discussion in the comments can often be more interesting than the original post.

The most difficult comments to reply to are the ones that pick out sloppiness or mistakes in your content. The second worst way to deal with these is to not reply. The worst way to deal with these is to delete the comment. We’ve seen comments deleted on a number of websites and it’s extremely bad practice. Own up to your mistakes and move on. We all make them from time to time.

Bad navigation

If your page is hard to navigate then your readers probably won’t stay long on your site. The most important rule of designing a good website is to make it as easy as possible for your users to find what they are looking for. Try asking your friends and family to look at your site. Having less tech-savvy people browse your web page is a useful way to gauge how difficult it is for the average person to navigate your site.

You could always add a simple usability survey to your website. Obviously, keep these short and to the point. Being forced to fill out a survey when you just want to read an article can really fuel browsing rage.

Spelling mistakes

This is something most people are guilty of from time to time (our site included). You should spend as much time editing your article as you did writing it. Failing that, go back and read some of your old articles and change any spelling mistakes you see. It’s often easier to spot mistakes when you haven’t read the post in a while.

What do websites do that really annoy you?