Top ‘bimbo’ website traits unveiled

~ Survey reveals ‘all front and no substance’ websites annoy the most ~ Websites that are attractive but have no real substance – the ‘bimbos’ of the web world – are the most frustrating online experience according to research carried out by SDL Tridion.

The top five online frustrations, as revealed by the research are:

1. Pop up ads: like acne or ex-boyfriends – always appear at the wrong time and difficult to get rid of, 78 per cent of respondents voted this the most frustrating aspect of the web.

2. Long intros you can’t click out of: too much irrelevant that wastes time, 56 per cent of respondents were irked the most by this.

3. Hitting ‘back’ and losing all your information: too much like hard work – 53 per cent of people were driven to distraction when they had to repeat inputting their details.

4. Downloading new applications: websites are too flashy sometimes. If all you want is information, having to spend minutes downloading the latest version of an application to watch a video or read a document puts 50 per cent of people off bothering.

5. Asking for personal details: why do you need to fill in your life story to get an answer out of some companies? 49 per cent of people found this nosey neighbour attitude annoying.

 “A company’s website is often the first thing visible to people when doing an online search. First impressions count and all ‘fluff’ and no content drives website users mad.” commented Erik Aeyelts Averink, President SDL Tridion.

 “Don’t push customers away and annoy them for no reason.”

Also infuriating people are moving graphics that are difficult to click on (40 per cent) a site without the usual options like contact us or about us (48 per cent) and irrelevant information on overcrowded homepages (39 per cent).

“These elements aren’t just annoying, combined they make up the website from hell,” continued Erik Aeyelts Averink. “Companies need to ensure they aren’t alienating web users. The Internet is often the first port of call for research and a website deserves the same time and effort spent on other marketing materials. If companies continue in this way they will lose not only customers, but reputation.”