7 Big Mistakes

That Make Running an Online Shop Harder Than It Needs to Be

Author: Iselle Maddocks 29/04/2026

In the last few weeks, I’ve taken a good look at the websites of many local businesses in and around Cheltenham. And honestly? The same patterns keep popping up. Not always massive dramatic disasters either. Just small things quietly costing traffic, trust, enquiries and sales.At the end of the day, most websites are trying to do three things: prove the business is legitimate, give people information, and generate sales or leads. But when the foundations are shaky, running the site becomes far harder than it needs to be.The biggest issues I keep seeing are:• missing SSL certificates
• abandoned or outdated websites
• slow loading pages
• poor mobile experiences
• running ads before fixing site problems
• lack of trust signals
• confusing navigation and clutterI’ve used those patterns to put together seven of the biggest mistakes I keep seeing. Let me know which one sounds the most familiar.

#1: The Ultimate Killer. No SSL Certificate.If I can’t get onto your site properly to begin with, no one else can either. No traffic, no sales, no trust. Honestly, it’s almost worse than not having a site at all.You can usually tell by looking for https in the URL or the little padlock icon. Most hosted platforms like Shopify or Squarespace sort this automatically nowadays, but I still come across sites missing it. And if a browser throws up a “not secure” warning, most people are gone immediately.Without an SSL certificate, customers can end up feeling like their details aren’t properly protected. And the moment people feel uneasy about entering payment information, they’re usually gone.Quick check: Visit your site and look for the little padlock icon next to the URL. If the site shows “Not Secure” or doesn’t start with https, it’s something worth fixing immediately.

#2: The Abandoned Site.This one happens all the time. The site gets built, everyone breathes a sigh of relief, the task gets ticked off the list and then… nothing.Except websites aren’t really ever “done”.Over time a layer of dust starts building up. Old information sits there, products disappear, links break, and things slowly drift out of date. Eventually Google starts treating the site a bit like an abandoned shop on the high street.Customers notice it too. If your latest update was three Christmases ago and the homepage still says “Happy Easter 2022”, people start wondering if anyone’s actually behind the wheel.A website doesn’t need rebuilding every five minutes, but it does need regular attention.

#3: The Slow Load.We’ve all done it. Clicked onto a website, waited, clicked again, waited some more, button doesn’t work, image jumps about, patience evaporates. Then we leave and find what we need somewhere else.Usually this comes from too many plugins or apps, massive image files, clunky scripts, or years of things being bolted onto the site without much thought for the overall experience.Sometimes businesses accidentally turn their website into the digital equivalent of carrying eight shopping bags, three coffees and a folding chair all at once. Simple and stable usually wins.Quick check: Open your site using mobile data instead of WiFi. If it feels frustrating to use, customers probably feel the same.

#4: The Ostrich.Pretending mobile doesn’t exist.A huge amount of web traffic now comes from phones. In fact, more than half of all global web traffic is now on mobile devices according to StatCounter. Yet loads of sites still seem to only get checked on a desktop computer once every six months. Tiny text, broken layouts, awkward menus, and buttons you need surgical precision to press.If somebody has to wrestle your website while standing in Tesco with one bar of signal, they probably won’t stick around very long.One of the best things you can do is simply use your own website properly on your phone for five minutes. You’ll spot problems very quickly.

#5: The Ad Chaser.Throwing money at ads before fixing the website itself.Running ads to a broken website is a bit like paying for loads more customers to walk into a messy shop and immediately walk back out again.More traffic won’t magically fix a confusing site. If people arrive and can’t work out what’s going on, don’t trust the business, or get frustrated halfway through buying, ads just help more people leave faster.Before paying to bring people in, make sure the place is actually ready for visitors.

#6: The Shady Site.No contact details. No reviews. No reassurance. No delivery info. No returns policy. No confirmation emails etc… Basically the online equivalent of a market stall covered in a tarp with somebody whispering “trust me”.Customers need reassurance before spending money online, especially with smaller businesses they haven’t used before. It needs to feel genuine, clear and looked after.It’s worth taking a step back and asking: does the website actually make people feel confident buying from you?Quick check: Can somebody easily find delivery info, returns, contact details and reviews within a few seconds?

#7: The Jumble Sale.Too many options, too much clutter, no clear direction, and navigation that feels like a treasure hunt designed by a sleep-deprived raccoon.Sometimes businesses try to show absolutely everything because they’re worried customers might miss something important. But usually the opposite happens. When everything shouts for attention, nothing stands out.Good websites guide people clearly. They make it obvious where to click, where to go next, and what actually matters. Simple navigation is massively underrated.A good website doesn’t need to be the fanciest thing on the internet. It just needs a clear purpose, decent foundations, useful information, good navigation, and signs that there’s an actual human behind it.Most of the time, the best improvements aren’t dramatic redesigns. They’re small fixes that make things clearer, smoother and easier to trust.Quick check: Ask somebody unfamiliar with the business to find a product or piece of information. Stay silent and watch where they struggle.

Final Thoughts.Most of these problems aren’t caused by businesses “doing it wrong”. Usually, it’s just the result of things growing over time, getting overlooked, or trying to juggle too much at once.A good website doesn’t need to be the fanciest thing on the internet. It just needs to feel clear, trustworthy, easy to use, and properly looked after.Small improvements can make a surprisingly big difference, both for customers and for making the day-to-day running of the business less stressful.If reading this made you think “…yeah, my site probably does a few of these”, don’t panic. Most of them are fixable without starting from scratch.If you’d like a fresh pair of eyes on your website or online shop, feel free to get in touch. Sometimes a few small changes can make a much bigger difference than people expect.

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