There are websites that are just so broken that anyone can see whats wrong. From truly heinous bridal clothing stores to bizarre and incompetent internet marketers, weve tracked down the ten ugliest, least functional, and most utterly bizarre websites we could find.
When you design websites for a living, even the smallest error on an otherwise great site can bring its credibility down. From broken RSS feeds to annoying image borders, small errors that go unnoticed by almost everyone can become a burning annoyance to an experienced designer. Designers, please take some sedatives before you read this list, or at least try to stay calm as youre reading.
1. The Internets Worst Bridal Store
What better way to kick off a worst websites list than with what is quite possibly the worst website in existence. Yvettes Boutique is supposed to be a bridal clothing and accessories store, but by looking at the website youd expect it to be a blind kids art project. There are hundreds of different colors, all used for completely stupid page elements like blinking text and blinding text boxes.
Of course, thats nothing without the soundtrack. In a move reminiscent of everyones 1990s Geocities page, Yvettes Boutique have opted to sell their bridal gowns with some weird pop punk song. Click through to the supporting pages to be greeted with equally annoying ambient music, classical themes, and 80s keyboard tunes.
2. Russias Ultra-Bland Government Website
Featuring about as much color as a Siberian winter, Russias official government website looks as if it was designed in 1998. Oh wait, take a look at the footer and youll see that it was. While this incredibly dull website looks as if it was designed inside a beige concrete USSR administrative building, at least its not as blindingly colorful or frustratingly animated as almost every other website on the list.
3. Internet Marketing Just Got Incompetent
As fun as it can be to name and shame poor designers, its even better to highlight the bizarre incompetent goons that make up the online marketing world. While many of them bring in thousands of dollars per day from their marketing efforts, the vast majority are, well, not quite so skilled.
Steve Wagenheim definitely falls into the latter category. As charming as purple page headers and courier body text might have been in 1996, the internet has grown up and most people have moved on. This would have been funny from a thirteen year old thats just starting to learn web design, but when it comes from a professionalinternet marketer who makes his money by telling other people how to make money, you know theres a level of competence missing.
4. Hypnosis Products that Give You a Seizure
Hypnosis has been around for a long time, which might explain why this hypnotherapists website looks like a 1980s Atari game. Offering a range of most likely ineffective hypnotherapy products, this gem of a website features everything that everyone hates about poor design. First, theres the grainy and pixelated GIF in the header. Then, theres the annoying clash of bright red and dark blue all over the place. Oh, and how could we forget, the blinding Starfox-style background.
Heres a hint for designers: if you want to gain respect (and clients), dont make your websites look like a Nintendo Entertainment System game. This website might have slipped through the cracks in 1996, but for a website made in 2006 its just beyond incompetent.
5. Accept Jesus, Forever Forgiven
Ok, so this one isnt real, or at least not unintentionally ugly. After the first four websites, we figured youd need a break and a healthy dose of self-awareness. From the fake security warning to the rainbow background, this bizarre cocktail of web design and parody includes almost every 1990s web design feature that designers hate. Next time youre bored on a Saturday night, score some serious drugs and stare at the background.
6. Tampax: The Only Corporation with an MS Paint Website
Most of the ugliest websites on the internet arent owned by major corporations, or even commercial properties for the most part. Theyre largely just the result of kids playing around on Geocities, or now defunct companies starting websites in 1996 and forgetting to update them.
However, Tampax is a major company, yet their website still looks like it was designed in MS Paint. Were not even talking about the flashy new Windows 7 version either, but the horrific abortion of drawing and design that shipped with Windows XP. For a company that brings in over ten billion dollars in revenue every year, youd think theyd be able to afford a website that doesnt make your brain hurt.
7. The Least Self-Aware Web Design Firm in Europe
Truth be told, theres almost definitely a worse web design company than this one in Europe, probably located in a bunker in a ex-Eastern Bloc country. This German web design company just doesnt quite know what theyre doing, do they? While purporting to be able to design websites from scratch and create convincing corporate web presences, their own looks like it was outsourced to a five-year-old.
From the annoying Flash animations to the blinking GIFs, theres not much worse than this web design company site. Bad design for your personal website or bridal clothing store is excusable but for a web design company its beyond stupid.
8. Premier Dinghy Insurance
Insurance websites arent meant to be attractive as much as theyre meant to be informative. Unfortunately, this bizarre dinghy and sailboat insurance website is neither. While there are no annoying flash animations or blinding tags, the strange blue and black color scheme, off-center layout, and broken title tags make this mess of a website a real masterpiece. Feel like sampling their intuitive interface? Try asking for an insurance quote.
9. Bee Bees Psychotic Kids Designs
This website contains everything there is to hate about the internet. First, visitors are greeted with a Flash intro, complete with annoying Twilight Zone music and sound effects that were probably ripped from Sonic the Hedgehog. Click through to the main site and youre greeted with one nice thing an end to the music and hundreds of blinding page elements. From annoying animated GIFs to clashing page colors (purple and turquoise, anyone?), Bee Bee Designs packs everything bad into one convenient location.
10. The Norwegian Gadget/Epilepsy Supercenter
The old saying less is more has never been more true than for this bizarre Norwegian gadget and electronics website. When it comes to going overboard, this company has done it twice once with its website design, and once again with its bizarre and mix-match product selection. Lets think this through who in their right mind would go shopping for a Porsche at the same store that stocks remote control helicopters? When it comes to design and business its best to eliminate unnecessary extras, not pile them on until you cant fit any more.
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Tags: annoying, web design, web design company, website looks