Quick Tip: Provide unique, creative 404 Pages
Do your web server error pages result in generic ones like this displayed in Figure A?
It may not look exactly like this one, but something close to it can be found on many a website today, including some top retailers. It doesn’t take much work — it really is just about doing it and getting it done!
However, a little effort pays big dividends for you and your end users’ experience to be a little more creative with your 404 page. Your visitors get frustrated, aggravated, bewildered, and flustered when these types of error pages appear, and as a result, will typically end up leaving or going to the competition for their business. An error page like the one above with no linking, navigation, void of images, or other options is like blindfolding your customer, taking them out of the store, and dumping them into the street. Let’s face it; users to your site are really your customers, so let’s treat them that way throughout the entire online experience.
How do you keep your customers on the website when web server errors occur? The answer is to build creative, unique, and informative error pages that keep your users on the site.
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