The average web visit is said to last less than a minute. This means if you don’t grab the attention of your visitor within this time, they’ll depart your page as quickly as they arrived.

So how do you hold the attention of web users for longer?

Good websites are not just about pretty pages and beautifully-written content. They are about creating a good user experience.

If your web analytics aren’t filling you with joy, then read on for the common mistakes that drive people away.

Any website that bombards its visitors with pop-ups as soon as they arrive is going to turn them off - big time. The use of pop ups after a minute is marginally more acceptable but the content has to be worth staying.

Web visitors will not tolerate trickery. If you’ve brought them to your site under false pretences, don’t expect them to stay. Some businesses set up deliberately misspelt domain names to redirect traffic from big businesses or international brands to their own site.

This tactic rarely works as people leave immediately upon realising their mistake. If you want to convert visitors to sales then you need to draw quality traffic. That is, people who are actively looking for what you can offer.

Your content needs to appeal to your market and answer everything they need to know.

Web users aren’t a very patient bunch and if they can’t find what they’re looking for in an instant, they’ll click the back button.

Navigation needs to be simplistic. You need to know what your customers want to know first so that you can signpost that information easily.

One way of doing this is to avoid overloading the site with information. Visitors don’t need too many options, just the important ones that answer their queries.

A busy homepage is one of the biggest turn-offs for web visitors. Keep it simple in both content volume and design. (note to one’s self, work on my home page!!)

At the risk of stating the obvious, make sure key information is within easy reach. People become bored if they have to hunt around.

A hotel, for instance, needs to direct visitors to the room booking option by a prominent button/link. A business that wants people to sign up to its mail list needs to offer a fast route to the contact form.

The use of video on a web page can help bring it to life and deliver a personal message to your customers. But websites which only offer video as a means of introduction – with no supporting text – can turn people away.

Web visitors who don’t have time to watch a video will leave if there’s no text-based information about the company. Let’s not forget, many people surf the internet at work and a site which presents all of its information in video form will quickly get shutdown by the user.

There are many reasons why a website is a turn off with users, this article merely skims the surface. As a business, your main drive should be to engage with your customers. Put yourself in their shoes and think about what it is you hate about websites.

You’ve less than a minute to make an impression so make sure you get it right.