8 Web Design Issues That Are Ruining Your Site (And How to Fix Them)

Most websites don’t fail because they look bad. They fail because something feels off. 

The design might look fine, but navigation isn’t intuitive. 

The visuals are polished, but the page takes a second too long to load. 

Visitors don’t always say what’s wrong. They simply leave.

That’s the hidden cost of poor web design. It creates friction in moments that should feel effortless. 

Great web design isn’t about flashy visuals or trends; it’s about clarity, flow, and intent.

We’ve put together a list of the 8 most common issues related to web design that negatively impact user experience, and various ways to address them.

What is considered a bad website design?

88% of visitors are less likely to return to a website after a bad experience. Here are some examples of bad website design elements: 

• Poor user experience (UX)
• Slow loading times
• Cluttered or disorganized layouts
• Lack of responsive web design for mobiles 

Other key indicators include confusing navigation, inconsistent design elements, broken links, and unclear calls to action, all of which hinder a user’s ability to find information or complete tasks.

8 most common website design issues and solutions on how to solve them

Here are 8 of the most common web design challenges and issues:

1. Lack of responsive web design

If your site doesn’t adapt to different screen sizes, then buttons become too small on mobile phones, content gets cut off, or the navigation menu breaks. 

For instance, menus that fail to collapse or clickable areas that fail to respond create doubts over a website’s authenticity and lead to an unpleasant user experience.

Solution

Use flexible grids, scalable images (SVGs where possible), and test on a variety of devices.

2. Balancing aesthetics with usability

Often, a site looks and feels great but lacks functionality due to heavy visuals that either slow things down or impact the content-viewing experience.

It is crucial to have a design that does not distract visitors from the primary goal on a page.

See what UX Research veteran Nick Cawthon had to say about the role of modern web designers in the age of AI.

Solution

Find and remove design elements that create friction or prevent visitors from completing a task.

3. Ignore SEO best practices in design

Another frequent website design challenge is the lack of SEO integration into the website’s architecture. 

Some design decisions, such as website content hidden behind tabs, images without alt text, and improper heading hierarchy, can harm search engine rankings and user discovery. 

Solution

Integrate all possible SEO elements from the start, including:

• Semantic HTML (H1, H2…)
• Alt text on images
• Fast loading speed
• Mobile-friendly design 

All the above elements should be linked to your SEO strategy.

4. Low accessibility

Many websites still don’t comply with web accessibility guidelines and fail to cater to users with impairments. 

Low-contrast text, missing alt tags, and non-keyboard navigation menus all impact the accessibility of a website.

Solution

Follow Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) standards to include minimum contrast ratios, provide alternative text for images, and support screen readers.

5. Slow page loading speed

Even the most aesthetically pleasing websites can lose visitors if the load time is high.

An eCommerce site that loads in 5 seconds sees 2.5x lower conversions than a website that loads in just one second.

Fancy graphics may keep visitors hooked, but heavy images often increase loading speed time and distract from primary tasks.

Solution

Use compressed and optimised images, using caching, minimising redirects and third-party scripts, and using lazy-loading where appropriate. Monitor actual load times and correlate with conversion metrics.

6. Navigation problems

Novel or overly creative navigation may confuse users. 

When designing your website, avoid using unclear labels or hidden menus, as this can reduce usability.

Solution

Keep navigation simple, predictable, consistent. Use common patterns (a hamburger menu on mobile devices, a visible top menu on desktop) and label categories clearly.

Test alternative navigation flows and keep the one that keeps users moving.

7. Low conversion focus

A lot of sites are visually appealing, but the design fails to guide users toward meaningful actions. 

Every element on a page should work towards nudging the visitor towards a common goal or action. This includes signing up for a demo, making a purchase, or clicking on a CTA.

Solution

Ensure your CTAs are prominent, the flow is intuitive, and the value proposition is clear.

8. Browser compatibility and legacy support

Most websites work well in Chrome, but break in older browsers or less common environments, which can affect a large section of your users. 

Ensure your website performs well, regardless of the browser or device used.

Solution

Test across multiple browsers, including older versions, to ensure compatibility. Use polyfills or fallback styles for features that are not supported by the browser.

How does poor website design affect user experience and conversions?

Your website is often your first (and sometimes only) impression the visitor has of your brand. In just 0.05 seconds, visitors form an opinion about your website. 

Also, website design influences 94% of first impressions. But even the best product or service can’t make up for a website that feels confusing, clunky, or slow.

Let’s understand how poor web design impacts the user experience:

1. Increases friction in the visitor journey

18% of eCommerce shoppers abandon a purchase due to a long or complicated checkout process.

When visitors land on your site, they subconsciously evaluate ease, specifically how quickly they can find what they came for.

If the layout is inconsistent, CTAs are not easy to find, or navigation is hard to follow, it creates decision friction among the visitors. 

Each extra click or scroll adds cognitive load, increasing the possibility of drop-offs.

Download this free eBook to improve your checkout and build a seamless user experience.

2. Damages trust and brand perception

Outdated visuals, poor readability, or inconsistent branding signal neglect, which is a risk for any visitor scrolling through your website. 

They might hesitate to sign up, share personal info, or make purchases on a site that feels unreliable.

3. Slows down decision-making

As per a study, desktop sites have an average page load time of 2.5 seconds. If your website is slow or cluttered, it will not only frustrate users but also cost you real money.

Even slight design improvements, such as optimized images, a better visual hierarchy, or a cleaner layout, can help reduce website load times.

4. Breaks mobile experiences

85% of mobile users want a company’s website to be as good or better than their desktop site.

Mobile responsiveness isn’t just a design best practice; it’s a conversion mandate.

Poorly designed websites still require users to pinch-zoom or scroll endlessly. When users can’t easily navigate or fill a form on their mobile devices, they simply bounce.

5. Prevents data-driven optimization

Poor design affects usability and also limits what you can learn. 

When site structure is inconsistent or visually overloaded, user research tools like heatmaps, session recordings, and surveys can surface noisy or misleading signals instead of clear patterns.

As a result, teams struggle to accurately isolate friction points, making it harder to determine what’s working, what’s failing, and where to optimize next.

If you want to understand user behavior, start by building a strong foundation. Read the classics, like ‘Don’t Make Me Think’, an old book that offers timeless insights into how people think and interact with interfaces. The key is to focus on fundamentals first. Build your base before jumping into advanced techniques. Learn how users think, learn the patterns, and only then move on to the more complex stuff.

Els Aerts, Co-founder, AGConsult
Source: Expert Interview

How UNext used VWO to identify friction and increase form submissions by 9.34%

UNext noticed that their online degree program pages were not driving enough lead actions. 

They used VWO’s heatmaps and session recordings capabilities to analyze the page and understand more about this issue. Their analysis revealed valuable insights about the page: 

• Lack of visual appeal
• Confusing form layout
• Missing benefits and urgency cues

Based on these insights, UNext redesigned the mobile page. They simplified the form flow, highlighted key scholarships and financial aid, and also added a clear application deadline for urgency.

The redesigned page led to a 11.68% uplift in clicks on the ‘Enroll Now’ CTA, and a 9.34% uplift in form submissions.

It’s a strong example of how small, insight-led design changes backed by A/B testing can meaningfully boost conversions without a full redesign.

The way forward

High bounce rates. Low form fills. Visitors dropping off at the exact moment you want them to stay.

These aren’t design problems you solve by guesswork. These are friction points you need to remove by seeing your website through your users’ eyes.

With VWO Insights, you can watch real user behavior to pinpoint exactly where friction occurs. 

Once you know what’s breaking the user experience and why, optimization becomes straightforward.

When you continuously analyze user behavior and refine user experiences based on those insights, your website becomes a growth engine rather than a guesswork exercise.

Schedule a demo to explore how you can spot and fix web design issues with VWO Insights.

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