Overexaggerated or Unrealistic Images
While cartoons are fun, they’re not real life. Potential customers are seeking to relate to you and your offerings, so they need to see real world applications to which they can relate. You want them to see an image and be reminded of something familiar which applies to them, or to want their life to reflect what’s in the imagery. Unless you’re writing a piece about a failed attempt by Wile E. Coyote to catch the Road Runner, keep it real.Widows/Orphans
If you don’t know what a widow is – in the literary world, at least – it’s simply ending a paragraph with a solitary word on the last line. It’s also called an orphan. It doesn’t seem terribly egregious, but sharp eyes will always be drawn to them, and it appears sloppy and unprofessional. Seriously, how does this look?Clashing Colors
Right off the bat, I – as a website reader – want to grab the nearest object over 10 pounds and hurl it violently into the screen, just from looking at the accompanying image. Always avoid color combinations which incite violence in your readers. By the way, this is a colorblind person’s nightmare. Your copywriters worked hard on the incredible content for the website. The least you can do for them is not make their readers want to turn off their monitors because of your unfortunate color selection.Low-Resolution Images
Why do people wear glasses or contacts? They do so because it’s important to them in their daily lives to see things more sharply and clearly. Why, then, would you use an image on your website which NO ONE could EVER see sharply or clearly, even if they had super-Kryptonian vision?! Some people blow off the importance of higher resolution photos, saying, “Eh, I couldn’t find anything higher res, so this will have to do.” Wrong. There exist exactly 42.9 bazillion high-resolution images on the Internet, at least ONE of which will suit your purposes. The option to utilize a low-resolution image should be punishable by public caning.. . . and the Mother of All Marketing Design Blunders: COMIC SANS
There are two justifiable reasons to use the Comic Sans font:1. You are a Kindergarten teacher making signs for your classroom.
2. Every other font on the face of the planet has mysteriously vanished from all computers.
Otherwise, you are highly advised to avoid, avoid, AVOID the Comic Sans font. It is the definition – the very epitome – of unprofessionalism. Want to start the zombie apocalypse? Use the clashing color scheme mentioned above with Comic Sans. People will lose their fricking minds to such a degree, it will put George A. Romero to shame. (–and shame on you if you had to click the link to find out who he was.)