1. Visit/Hit Counters

Nothing says “amateur website” like a good ole’ fashioned hit counter.

Let me be blunt…

No one really cares if you’ve had 15,034 visitors since May or 232 hits today. They care about your content, site usability and what your site can do for them.

I think a lot of people add counters because they feel once the number increases, it will make their site look popular. But if you have a low-trafficked site and someone happens to notice your hit counter has only gone up a few digits in a week, it’s going to make your site look small-ish.

If you want to keep track of your stats, that’s fine. Use a hidden counter like Google Analytics. You can check your stats at any time while keeping your info hidden from the public.

But stay away from visible stat counters. Yuck!

2. Animation Overload

Animation can be effective in small doses, but you don’t want your site to look as if an Adobe Flash program threw up on your homepage.

I remember designing my first site. I was so excited that I added any kind of graphic that either flashed, bounced or scrolled. I’m surprised I didn’t get a headache from looking at it.

If the goal of your site is to make money, realize content sells, not graphics. And you don’t want anything to distract from your message. Graphics are fun and can enhance a site, but too much can turn people away.

3. Fake Testimonials

Who the hell is “John P. from Colorado”? I’m sure there probably is such a person, but chances are he never emailed you about your site.

If you want to gain credibility from your testimonials, either get permission to add the person’s e-mail address or add a website link after the person’s name. (Be sure to get their permission!)

Don’t make up people and add a city after their name. It’s the oldest testimonial trick in the book and it doesn’t fool anyone. If anything, it makes you look less trustworthy and this is amateur work at its best.

4. Too Many Ads

Web surfers are getting savvier. They recognize Google ads, ignore banner ads more and more, and can tell when someone is more interested in getting paid than offering good information.

Work on building your credibility with good content first, then start serving up ads. And even then, don’t overdo it. If you spend time making your site useful, you’ll be surprised at how much you can make from a minimal amount of ads.

5. Inconsistent Layout

Have you ever gone to a site, clicked around and wondered if you are on the same site?

Well, if I just described your site, you’ve made a common mistake that screams “amateur.” A website should have a cohesive look and all pages should share the same layout.

Use the same fonts on every page, keep link colors the same and be sure your navigation remains consistent. And if you need help choosing a color scheme, check out my hex color scheme generator.