The Cost of a Poorly Designed Website: Like Running a Shop With the Lights Off
If you want to understand the cost of a poorly designed website, imagine this.
You’ve paid good money for a lovely shop on a busy high street. But:
- The door is stiff and hard to open
- The lights are dim
- The signs are confusing
- Staff are hiding out the back
People still walk past, but hardly anyone comes in. Those who do quickly leave.
That’s exactly what a bad website does to your business.
In this guide, we’ll unpack the real, often hidden, costs of poor web design for UK SMEs – and what you can do to fix it without burning your entire marketing budget.
1. The silent killer: lost trust in seconds
Your website is often the first impression someone has of your business. And people make that judgement fast – in a couple of seconds.
A poorly designed website feels like walking into a messy office:
- Outdated design? “Are they still in business?”
- Blurry photos? “Do they cut corners?”
- Broken links? “If they can’t manage a website, can they manage my project?”
You might be brilliant at what you do. But if your website looks cheap or neglected, visitors subconsciously assume your work will be the same.
Cost to your business:
- Fewer enquiries from people who would have called
- More price sensitivity (people assume you’re “budget”)
- Harder to win bigger or more professional clients
Good design isn’t about being flashy. It’s about saying, without words: “You can trust us.”
2. The leaky bucket: when traffic doesn’t turn into enquiries
Many SMEs think the answer to poor results is more traffic:
“We just need more visitors… maybe some Google Ads… maybe social media.”
But if your website is badly designed, you’re just pouring water into a leaky bucket.
Signs your website is leaking leads:
- People visit, but don’t fill in your contact form
- You get lots of calls asking questions that your site should answer
- You’re getting traffic from SEO or ads, but no real increase in business
Common design-related leaks include:
- Confusing navigation
- Walls of text with no clear next step
- Tiny or hidden contact details
- Forms that feel like applying for a mortgage
Cost to your business:
- Wasted money on ads that send people to a poor page
- Lost word-of-mouth referrals (someone Googles you, sees the site, and quietly backs away)
- Missed opportunities from people who were ready to buy but got frustrated
Before spending more on marketing, fix the bucket.
3. The time thief: when your website creates extra admin
A poorly designed website doesn’t just lose you customers – it also steals your time.
Think of your ideal website as a helpful receptionist:
- Answers common questions
- Filters out time-wasters
- Collects the right information
- Books appointments or calls
A badly designed website does the opposite. It creates work:
- People call or email asking basic questions your site should answer
- You get vague enquiries: “How much for a website / extension / event?” with no details
- You spend time chasing people who never turn up or reply
Cost to your business:
- Hours lost each week to unnecessary calls and emails
- Less time for actual paid work
- More frustration for you and your team
Good design and clear content turn your site into a time-saver, not a time-sink.
4. The credibility gap: looking smaller than you are
You might run a tight, professional operation. But if your website looks like it was thrown together in a weekend, you’ll struggle to win certain types of work.
It’s a bit like turning up to a client meeting in a creased t‑shirt when everyone else is in smart casual. You might be brilliant, but you feel on the back foot.
Poor design can:
- Make you look less established than competitors
- Put you out of the running for bigger, more profitable contracts
- Make partners and suppliers hesitant to recommend you
Larger clients, in particular, will often browse your website and think:
“If we put them in front of our clients, will they reflect well on us?”
Cost to your business:
- Lost opportunities you never even hear about
- Being stuck with lower-value, more price-sensitive customers
- Slower growth, even when your service is excellent
A well-designed site helps you punch above your weight and look like the business you actually are.
5. The ad money bonfire: paying to send people to a bad page
Here’s where the cost of a poorly designed website really stings.
If you’re running Google Ads, Facebook ads, or paying for any kind of traffic, a bad website is like:
Paying for a TV advert that sends people to a shop with no staff and locked doors.
You’re spending money to:
- Send people to pages that don’t clearly explain what you do
- Drive traffic to slow, clunky pages that people abandon
- Promote services that are buried three clicks deep
Cost to your business:
- Higher cost per lead (or no leads at all)
- Difficulty knowing whether the ad or the website is the problem
- The feeling that “online marketing doesn’t work for us”
Often, simply improving the design and structure of your website can double or triple the return on the ad spend you’re already investing.
6. The hidden tech tax: when your site can’t grow with you
A lot of SMEs start with a cheap template or a favour from a mate. That’s fine at the start.
The problem comes when you want to:
- Add online booking
- Take payments
- Launch a new service
- Improve your SEO
If your site is poorly designed or built on shaky foundations, every change becomes a hassle:
- Simple updates require a developer
- The design breaks when you add new content
- You’re stuck with old plugins and themes that no one dares update
Cost to your business:
- Paying over the odds for small tweaks
- Putting off improvements because it’s “too much faff”
- Staying stuck with an outdated site because a full rebuild feels scary
Good web design isn’t just about today. It’s about giving you a website that can grow with your business.
7. How to tell if your website is costing you money
Here’s a quick, non-technical health check you can do this week.
Step 1: The 5-second test
Ask someone who doesn’t know your business (friend, relative, colleague) to open your homepage and answer:
Within 5 seconds, can they say:
- What you do
- Who you do it for
- What they should do next (call, book, buy, enquire)
If not, your design and content need work.
Step 2: The mobile reality check
Look at your site on your phone:
- Is the text easy to read without pinching and zooming?
- Are buttons big enough to tap with your thumb?
- Is your phone number clickable?
If using your site on mobile feels fiddly, visitors will give up.
Step 3: The enquiry path
Pretend you’re a potential customer and try to:
- Get a quote
- Book a call
- Make an appointment
Count how many clicks it takes and how much information you have to give.
If it feels like hard work, it is.
Step 4: The competitor glance
Look at 2–3 local competitors’ websites.
Ask yourself honestly:
- Would you choose you, based on the website alone?
- Who looks more professional, more trustworthy, easier to deal with?
If the answer isn’t you, that’s a red flag.
8. Turning your website from cost centre to 24/7 salesperson
The good news: fixing a poorly designed website doesn’t always mean starting from scratch.
Sometimes, small changes make a big difference:
- Clarify your message on the homepage: who you are, what you do, who it’s for
- Simplify your navigation so people can find key services quickly
- Add clear calls-to-action on every page (call, enquire, book, buy)
- Use real photos of your team, work, and premises where possible
- Make contact easy – visible phone number, short forms, clear opening hours
For many SMEs, though, there’s a point where patching an old site is like repainting a crumbling wall. Looks nicer, still falls down.
That’s where a properly planned, professionally designed website pays off:
- Built for speed and mobile from day one
- Structured around conversions, not just looking pretty
- Designed to grow with your business, not hold it back
9. What we do differently at Los Webos
At Los Webos, we treat your website like what it really is: your 24/7 salesperson.
We focus on:
- Clean, modern design that builds trust at a glance
- Clear, simple journeys that turn visitors into enquiries and bookings
- Fast, mobile-friendly builds so you don’t lose people to slow, clunky pages
- Sites that are easy to update, so you’re not tied to a developer for every tweak
We work with UK SMEs across trades, professional services, hospitality, retail and local services – businesses just like yours, who know their website should be working harder.
Ready to stop your website quietly costing you money?
If any of this felt uncomfortably familiar, your website might be holding your business back more than you realise.
We can help you:
- Review your current site and spot the biggest leaks
- Prioritise fixes that give the fastest improvement
- Plan a new, high-converting website if you’ve outgrown the old one
Let’s turn your website from an expensive brochure into a hard-working, 24/7 salesperson.
Get in touch with Los Webos today for a friendly, no-jargon chat about where your site is costing you – and what we can do about it.