Most websites in any given industry are almost identical – except for small differences. They use very similar layouts, vague terminology in navigation, and bland sounding text. All with the same little icons, same types of content, same popups, same value proposition, same type of promotions, and even the same style. If all businesses look and sound the same, does it even matter who you choose to do business with?
Has this ever happened to you?
"I just want to find the link (image, article, listing, house, post, etc.) I was looking at last week…"
You were searching online and found a good website. Later, maybe a day or week go by and you want to find that website again, but you don’t remember the name of the business or the website URL?
How would you go about finding it again? I bet you kinda remember how you found it. Something like this:
You open google and type in your search term (or something like it) eg. “Real Estate ”, and up pop the results. You start browsing the titles, and descriptions, hoping that something jogs your memory, or you just click each link following the path you think you took before – until you find the same one again.
All while thinking…
Whatever your brain used to remember a detail on the website, searching for a vague detail that you remember about the content. You’ll know exactly when you find it – if you do.
Our brains store information by capturing details (colors, words, images) that we find interesting in a random association that is less like a well structured database, and more like an inter-connected web of ideas… one idea leading to the next. We create mini-maps of references, like breadcrumbs in the forest, that we can use as clues to find our way back. That’s why it’s easier to remember *how you found something* than it is the exact details, company name, website URL, or the perfect search term of what you originally found.
The less busy a website is, the less content you try to cram on the page, the more likely people will have a pleasant experience on your site and find what they are looking for. The easier you are to remember.
Most industries have an industry leader. They do the most sales, they have the most popular website, location, & offering. Everyone else in the industry decides (consciously or subconsciously) their competitor’s website must be the best practice. By continually comparing their design, website, values, and offerings against their competitor(s) – little by little their website becomes more like everyone else’s.
Have you ever heard arguments like this?
Bit-by-bit, these types of assumptions and decision making drivers erode away any uniqueness from your offering – on your website, in your content, and how you sell your business to people. The end result is an offering that is easy to dismiss because it’s exactly the same as all the alternatives to anyone looking in from the outside.
Every business is unique. Every business has different strengths and advantages. That’s why there are so many different businesses – they exists because they believe they can do something better. But very few businesses actually communicate their core values in a way that make their business unique, help them stand out against the competition, better align with their customers values, and leave a lasting impression. Whatever the advantages are, they are usually well known inside the company as fact:
Even if you know “our business is better than the competition because…” and “Our customers know it.” Even if you write your advantage at the very top of the website, right beside your name in bold letters. It doesn’t matter to anyone if your website looks exactly like the last 10 websites they just viewed.
You look, sound, and act exactly the same as everyone else. Even though I can clearly see that your brand colors are red instead of blue (like the other guy), if I covered your logo with my thumb, I would be hard-pressed to tell you what brand I am looking at. Most websites could easily swap content and images with all or any of their competitors without making a difference in the impression or offering to their website visitors.
All of this “copying” results in websites that are not unique, but also suffer from another problem – Overload. Too many things on the page, and too much trying to get our attention. The fear of missing out (FOMO) results in too many things on a website for fear of someone missing something important. Instead of making the website about what’s important. Most websites suffer from overload, in part by trying to include everything from their competitors, just how they did.
Affordance is like intuition. All people have great intuition about what they like and don’t like and what they want. What if we could make them feel like they have super powers by making your website extra intuitive to them?
“Affordance is a design concept that describes the properties of an object that suggest how it can be used. Affordances are visual cues that help users interact with physical and digital objects.” - coined by American psychologist James J. Gibson
You have probably seen websites using the hamburger menu icon popularized around 2009. Most people know that clicking on those 3 little horizontal lines will reveal a menu. That is a good affordance. It instantly communicates “Menu” to people, and they know to click it to see your website’s navigation. It allows you to minimize the amount of menu items on screen reducing cognitive load.
Affordance means using visual cues people understand so they can intuitively accomplish their goals on your website. Affordance does not mean “do what everyone else does”.
There are many websites that include too many elements in the name of affordance - adding a hamburger menu even though the website has full navigation, dropdown menus, sub-menus, and breadcrumb navigation. There are a few reasons for this, but usually boil down to:
This results in websites that have a visual overload of options, links, images, information, and variations of the same thing. All making it less intuitive for people to find what they are looking for connect with your content (and brand). Remember, our brains don’t distinguish and compartmentalize website URLS and business names as well as we think. Instead, it draws a mini-path map in our brain of the route we took to finally find what we we’re looking for based on our interest.
Each attention-grabbing element—banners, pop-ups, or extra menus—distracts users and diminishes your website’s impact. Simplicity fosters memorability.
It’s like walking down a path, while being forced to look at a bunch of billboards every few steps. What are you going to remember? You are going to have to learn to ignore all those billboards if you want to remember the path you took.
The easiest way to respect people’s time, energy, and effort is to clear away all the noise and create a clear path to the information they are looking for. A breath of fresh air on the internet where thousands of things are calling for your attention and inundating your visual senses.
Most people think in terms of their website only,
But the truth is, it’s combined with all the websites they saw before (and even after) seeing your website. Have you ever been looking for a hotel or searching online and finally thought to yourself:
After shuffling through 50 websites. How does that feel? What if your website could be an oasis of calm in a sea of never-ending full–volume content (read: advertisements)?
We are over saturated with overloaded, “same-looking” apps, websites, documents, content, and generic but bold statements. All yelling for attention, all trying to hook us with any and every possible piece of content that “might” catch our attention. All placing way too much information in front of us at any given moment. Making it hard to concentrate and hard to appreciate. This leads to people ignoring or completely missing critical information.
People are often confused as to why visitors seem to completely miss crucial information on the website.
The truth is, we are all users and we all know how to use a website. Websites demand too much mental load and we have learned to ignore everything and anything that is not what we are scanning for. We don’t even read the content unless it aligns with what we are specifically looking for. If we didn’t do that, all we would see are the millions of billboards seeking our attention, distracting us from our goal.
The first step in creating anything is empathy. We are not talking about “Users” – random groups of hoards on the internet that are faceless drones waiting to be hooked. You are a person and so am I. What are some websites that you really love visiting, and why do you like it? What are some websites that you find annoying?
…”Because I am afraid they might miss something”… is not empathy. It’s just fear. And fear never makes great decisions.
The solution is simple - remove everything and anything that is not exactly what someone needs on the page. Create an oasis of content that doesn’t try to hook a person but instead tries to serve their interest and provide a value-first experience. Make every single pixel fight to exist on the page because without it the page wouldn’t work. Don’t add anything to your website because “that is how websites are supposed to be”. Use a sniper rifle instead of a shotgun to hit your target.
“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Airman's Odyssey
Isn’t it a good thing that all websites look the same so that we can concentrate on the content instead of “fancy website design”? Isn’t that just how websites look?
Many people confuse design & brand with style. Design is not only colors, fonts, and how something looks. Design is how something works, feels, and communicates. Something that is well designed has the brand values woven into its very fabric, so much so, even if you used random colors, the brand would be evident. If you changed the colors on your website, would it still be “your brand”?
There are many ways to emphasize your brand on your website – well beyond font choices and colors. Do you claim to simplify problems? Then why is your website complicated? Simplicity should be the first thing I think of when I see your website. Especially after seeing 10 other complicated websites.
Your website should be different enough that it clearly emphasizes your brand, values, advantage, distinguishes you from the competition, and leaves a lasting impression. That is design.
Here are a few examples of websites that do away with the norm and reject their industry conventions. They just happen to be leaders in their industry, not because they try to “out-do” everyone else, precisely the opposite. They chart their own path, create a lasting impression, cult followings, and people care about what they have to offer (and say). They are the opposite of generic-same-same. As a result, they stand out & above the multitudes of competitors in their industry.
So, how do you actually declutter your website and make it stand out? It’s not just about removing things—it's about making intentional choices that put your users’ needs first. Here are ways you can create a memorable, useful, and impactful website that leaves an impression:
Every page on your website should have a clear purpose. Ask yourself: What is the ONE thing I want someone to do or understand on this page? If a piece of content doesn’t directly support that goal, it’s clutter. Cut it.
Example:
If your homepage is about introducing your brand, it doesn’t need detailed product descriptions. Let the homepage guide users to explore, not overwhelm them with everything at once. Describe your unique solution from the perspective of your customer and let them explore the rest of your website.
People don’t read websites—they scan them. Use typography, color, and spacing to guide their eyes to the most important elements. You don’t need to repeat content throughout your website for it to get noticed. That is what your navigation is for. Reduce the purpose of a single page to it’s primary objective. Don’t cram everything at the top. Place your call-to-action buttons inline with the content they pertain to. It’s ok if people scroll. It’s the very first thing most people do on a website. Especially true on mobile.
Quick Wins:
Website navigation is like a map. Use your navigation to tell your brand’s story one section at a time. Instead of generic sounding terms use specific labels that communicate your brand’s and visitor’s values.
Test It:
Show your navigation to someone unfamiliar with your business and ask:
If not, simplify it.
White space isn’t “empty” — it’s breathing room. It helps your content stand out and gives users a chance to process information without feeling overwhelmed.
Try This:
Flashy animations, sliders, and popups might seem cool, but they often do more harm than good. Instead of impressing users, you’re just distracting them.
Ask Yourself:
If the answer is no, remove it.
Forget the buzzwords and corporate jargon. Speak directly to your users in a way they understand and appreciate. Imagine you’re having a conversation with them. Remember, people – not generic “users”.
Example:
Instead of “Utilize our cutting-edge solutions to optimize your workflow,” try “We help you work smarter, not harder.”
Your competitors might all look the same, but you don’t have to. Lean into what makes your business unique, and reflect that in your design and content. This is your secret weapon. Find the commonalities in your competitors websites, then do the complete opposite – they zig, you zag.
Remember:
If your website looks and feels like every other website in your industry, what’s stopping people from going with your competitor instead?
By being bold, reducing clutter, and designing with intention, you’ll create a website that not only stands out and reenforces your brand, but also leaves a lasting impression. It’s not about how much you can add—it’s about maximizing value with razor–sharp focus.