18 Jan 404 Error Pages…
Have you ever searched for something online only to come across a dead boring 404 “error” page (where the content you’re looking for can’t be found)?
Yep, we’ve all seen them. The question we must ask ourselves is… what shall we *do* with them?
I believe that all websites should have one… OK, Google doesn’t need one – we all know who and what Google is and there’s really not much more needed… if you make a mistake, you click the back button.
Eg; http://www.google.com.au/dumbpage
Some people get creative…
Others Do Squat –
The point is… lost traffic is just that… LOST TRAFFIC if you don’t do something about it.
If you do a search online you’ll find a whole bunch of “nice, cute and creative” 404 error pages… who cares!?
Just make sure that no matter what you do, you also offer your visitor a chance to find what they were really looking for…. otherwise they will probably go looking for it else where.
Here’s the text I use on my page –
Oops !
The page you’re after has moved!
In January I initiated a site-wide upgrade of the Internet Business Training Database, and while I tried to maintain all content at its previous address, some pages may have been either moved or “re”-moved responding to current search engine strategies.
Please accept my apologies. Take a look at our updated SITE MAP, or browse through the database training categories listed below.
Regards, Paul Barrs.
(and then WordPress lists my site Categories and a banner for website design training)
My goal is to “convert” this LOST TRAFFIC into “FOUND traffic”. Your goal for your website should be the same.
You can take a look here https://www.paulbarrs.com/nopage
The point is… you’ve got to do something and it will probably only take a few minutes. If you’re using WordPress all you need to do is edit the 404.php in the “editor”. If you’re not using WordPress than you’ll find a list of easy to follow step by step tutorials on how to create your own custom 404 error page – no need for me to published “yet another one here”.
What else are you doing today? Have you got a custom 404 error page that converts your lost traffic into found traffic yet? Go do it now.
Paul
