Differentiating your company on the internet is a huge challenge.  All your competitors are right there fighting for real estate and attention, and if you aren’t distinctive your prospects may wander off in search of something more shiny.

Nonetheless, making your site hard to navigate is even worse than being ordinary.  So, don’t use cryptic visual devices or clever wordplay to try and make yourself interesting.  No, really … don’t!  These things might seem fun, but they will most likely turn your web visitors away:

• Flash and large photo files.  If your page takes longer than a second to load, you’re going to start losing your visitors.
• Quirky navigation.  I’ve seen navigation bars where the links are all little graphics, or the page names are cryptic little witticisms based on the name of the company or the industry.  If your readers have to guess what is on the page, they won’t bother opening it.
• ‘Enter Here’ Landing Pages. Don’t do that, unless you have to have a landing page offering a choice of languages.  It’s an invitation for your visitor to click away before they’ve even had a glimpse of your sales message.

Set yourself apart instead by allowing your personality into your website, or by detailing all that you do for your clients. That’s what will make you look different.