Adobe asked me to weigh in on the most common web design mistake I see. The answer in a word: bullshit. But of course I elaborated a bit.

I think the most common web design mistake I see is sites not respecting users and their time. This is represented in a number of ways:

  • Bloated, slow-loading pages
  • Overly-aggressive advertising
  • Popups and overlays
  • Dark patterns
  • Other superfluous or intentionally deceptive practices I lovingly classify as bullshit.

Users of the Web are inundated with more information than ever before, so it’s up to us as people creating for the Web to respect users and their time. That means giving them what they want as quickly as possible. That means putting up a fight when asked to implement cruddy and/or deceptive practices. That means respecting your craft.