Keep as many interested prospects on your site by avoiding these blunders:

__Multiple Popup and Popunder Windows.

Many online business owners swear by effectiveness of popups and popunders for getting more subscribers, making sales, or generating leads.

At same time, a large percentage of users claim to dislike popups and popunders. And it's no wonder; many of us have been 'held hostage' by popups that spawn even more popups when you try to close them, until your screen is filled with windows and you're completely frustrated. Most people simply do NOT appreciate multiple popups or popunders!

If you choose to use them, try for a 'happy medium' -- a window that appears only once upon entry or exit. One such script is available fr*e at DesignerIndex, http://www.designerindex.com/Free_Tools/popupwindow.shtml .

__Unreadable Text.

Certain formats are easier to read than others. For example, it's generally accepted that black text on a white background is easiest to read. The reverse -- light text on a colored background -- can cause fatigue when reading large blocks of text, and is better used to highlight a portion of page.

Similarly, text that is too small can cause problems. Although it's possible to change displayed text size on a browser, many Internet users don't know how.

__Confusing Navigation.

Ever been to a site where it's hard to get around? It's just as easy to leave and go instead to a competitor's site. Make your navigation clear and simple.

__Trapping Visitors In Your Frames.

Improperly designed frames can leave your visitor 'trapped' on your site, unable to use 'back' button on their browsers to leave. You can bet they'll never be back if you try to force them to stay! BigNoseBird.com has a nice little tutorial on how to get 'Frames look' without actually using them. Read it at http://bignosebird.com/k3.shtml .

__Broken ordering links!

It sounds silly... heck, it *is* silly. Check your order links regularly to ensure that they still work. Enough said.

__Splash pages.

You can spend hours, days, weeks or even months getting your website to look wonderful. There is nothing in world that feels beats feeling you get when someone comes to at your site and tells you that it looks great. All your hard work has paid off!

But has it? Apart from looking good your site has to work smoothly for it to be successful.

By looking good I don't mean that it has to have loads of pictures and graphics and animated gifs. In fact opposite is often case. A well designed site that is clear and simple to navigate will stand head and shoulders above one that is full of complex graphics making it visually confusing. Just remember, when it comes to website design, LESS is MORE.

OK, so you have kept site clean and simple. That's a great start. But not only must it look great it has to work smoothly and that means regular maintenance and checking.

There is nothing more frustrating than to visit a site offering say a software product where you read synopsis on home page and you are interested in what program could do you for you. You want more information, so you clink link marked "Detailed Product Information". What happens? The page can't be found. You try again, and again page still can't be found. Are you impressed? No, not at all, particularly if site belongs to a company that is supposed to specialise in software programs designed for analysis of surveys carried out on web!

Precisely this happened to me today with a company I read about in a professional market research journal. I gave up on this site and checked out site of one of their competitors - and all their links worked perfectly and their product looked every bit as attractive. Guess which company I would choose if I decide to buy package?