Have you ever clicked on a website link only to see a 404 error page?
So you ask, what is a 404 error page? Well, these page not found errors occur when a webpage no longer exists or can no longer be found. It is essential to have a well-designed 404 error page to keep users engaged and ensure your website is professional. In this blog, I will explain to you why 404 error pages matter, what cause them and how to fix them to improve your website’s performance.
Why Do 404 Errors Happen?
There are a multitude of reasons as to why your website includes broken website links, including:
- Broken / dead links- this is when the page has been removed, but the link to the content still exists.
- Mistyped URL- this would occur when the user enters the wrong web address.
- Moved page- the page has been moved without a redirect set up.
- Deleted page- The page was removed from the website.
- Server issues- this is when the server is not set up to respond to the request.
Why 404 Errors Can Hurt Your Business Website
If your website has too many 404 error pages, it can negatively impact your business in several ways.
- Poor user experience
- Search engines (SEO)
- Reduced trust & Credibility
It’s important to value the user’s experience on your website. Frequent 404 errors can make users leave your website quickly, which in turn tells google your site isn’t great- reducing your SEO ranking. Users will also get the impression that your website is not credible due to lack of care and maintenance.
How to Fix & Prevent 404 Errors on Your Website
Making a clean website without excessive 404 errors is akin to the success of your website. Here’s how we prevent them.
Use search tools to check for broken links. A common tool is the “Google Search Console”. Use this data to fix or remove incorrect links.
If you have moved or deleted a page, make sure you set up redirects to send users to the correct page. WordPress has a plugin “Redirection” which makes this very easy.
Although these can be used to help prevent 404 errors, it is also still a good idea to improve your 404-error page. I’ll cover how to make a helpful error page in the next section.
Making a Helpful 404 Error Page
When someone lands on one of your error pages you don’t want it to be a dead end for them, this would lead to the user having a poor experience and most likely just leaving your site.
You want to keep users engaged and help them find what they are looking for.
- Include a clear message to let the user know that there has been an error.
- Give the users a navigation link or search bar to help them quickly get back to what they were looking for. You can also add a call to action to encourage visitors to stay engaged in your content.
Final Thoughts: Don’t Ignore Your 404 Pages
A 404 error page might seem to be a small issue-which it is. However, it is important to capitalise the opportunity of the page not found error by implementing some user engagement. Otherwise, it can lead to users leaving your site, leading to a high bounce rate. This signals search engines that your site is unorganised and can reduce your page ranking.
To conclude, a 404 error page should not be a dead end on your site, it should be an opportunity to point users in the right direction with redirects with relevant content.
