Worst Websites of 2011: Overview

I'm on my 18th year of critiquing bad design and, frankly, I still am amazed that people—including major corporations (Xerox, Pine-Sol, Staples and Symantec come to mind)—haven't learned much.

The minor corporations learned even less. Check out my list of Worst Over-The-Top Websites. The site listed as #1 will make you bury your head in embarrassment. Heck, all of them are frightening.

Here are the Worst Sites of 2011

The 20 Worst Websites of 2011. Every year I look for the silver bullet that will turn all the web pages that suck into web pages that don't suck. The best I can come up with are 200+ suggestions on two different checklists. Generally, these sites are not car wrecks on the Information Highway. If you want to see those sites, go to Worst Over-The-Top Websites of 2011.

The Worst Website Navigation of 2011. Encyclopedia.com defines web navigation as "The process of moving from one web page to another on the same web site or another Web site using hyperlinks." Tell that to these sites.

Worst Over-The-Top Websites of 2011. This year's selection is really horrible. Really horrible. As I've said in previous years, "An "Over-The-Top" website is a lot like pornography — you know it when you see it. Over-The-Top sites generally deal with philosophy, religion, politics, end times, etc., but they're generally not mainstream."

Here are the Also Rans —The Contenders for Worst Web Site of 2011

The sites that made the "Worst of…" lists above, we're removed from the articles below. If you're looking for more bad sites, this is a good place to start.

The Ten Worst Websites of 2011—First Quarter Contenders. Ah, the power and glory of sucky website design. There's a lot of Mystery Meat Navigation and an atrocious example of navigation from a health care provider who should know better. Oh. There's a government agency. Of course there is.

The 20 Worst Websites of 2011: Second Quarter Contenders and How These Sites Relate to Your Website. Some recognizable companies show up—Pine Sol, State of Utah, Trader Joe's and Xerox. In fact, it's possible that Xerox will be the Worst Website of 2011 because their site is just awful.

I've added a new teaching tool called, "How These Sites Relate to Your Website." If applicable, I pointed out each mistake the site made using my Web Design Checklist 1: 178 Mortal Sins and Web Design Checklist 2: 83 Potential Mortal Sins. Look for a link similar to the following:

"Does your website make any of the mistakes made by Xerox? (Click for list.)"

The (33) Worst Websites of 2011: Third Quarter Contenders. .