I Have Built Over 50 Websites for Founders. Here Are the 7 Mistakes Every One of Them Made Before Hiring Me.

I build websites and landing pages for founders, SaaS companies, and startups. I have done this for years across industries ranging from AI platforms to e-commerce to Web3 to personal brands.

Every client who hires me has the same story. They spent money on a website before. It looked good. It did not convert. They do not know why.

After reviewing hundreds of these failed pages, the reasons are always the same. Here are the 7 mistakes I see every time, and what I build differently.

Mistake 1: They Built a Website. They Needed a Landing Page.

A website is a brochure. It has an About page, a Team page, a Blog, a Careers section, and six different navigation links. It tells the world everything about the company and asks the visitor to do nothing specific.

A landing page is a sales tool. It has one message, one audience, one offer, and one button. It exists to convert a specific visitor into a specific action.

Most early-stage founders build a website when they need a landing page. They spend $5,000 to $15,000 on a full site with 8 pages. Then they run ads to the homepage and wonder why nobody signs up.

What I build instead: a single, focused landing page that matches the ad, speaks to one audience, and drives one action. I add pages later, after the core conversion loop is proven.

Mistake 2: They Designed for Themselves, Not Their Customer

Founders know their product deeply. They want the website to reflect everything they have built. Every feature. Every integration. Every technical capability. Every future roadmap item.

The visitor does not care. The visitor has a problem. They want to know three things: Do you solve my problem? Can I trust you? What do I do next?

A landing page with 14 feature blocks, a 3-minute explainer video, and a 47-word headline answers none of those questions. It answers the founder's question: "Does this page make my company look impressive?"

What I build instead: pages that lead with the visitor's problem, present the solution in plain language, and place trust signals next to every decision point. The founder's ego goes last. The customer's clarity goes first.

Mistake 3: They Chose a Designer Who Makes Beautiful Pages, Not Pages That Convert

A portfolio full of award-winning visual design does not mean the designer understands conversion. Beauty and conversion are different disciplines.

I have seen $20,000 websites with stunning animations, custom illustrations, and perfect typography that convert at 0.8%. I have seen $3,000 pages with a bold headline, a clear form, and a single testimonial that convert at 11%.

The difference is not talent. It is priority. A designer focused on aesthetics optimizes for how the page looks. A designer focused on conversion optimizes for what the visitor does.

What I build instead: pages where every design decision serves the conversion goal. Visual hierarchy guides the eye to the CTA. White space reduces cognitive load. Typography makes the value proposition readable in two seconds on a phone screen. The page looks good because clarity looks good.

Mistake 4: They Forgot That 83% of Their Visitors Are on a Phone

Most founders review their website on a 27-inch monitor. Their visitors open it on a 6-inch phone screen while standing in line for coffee.

83% of traffic comes from mobile. Mobile converts 40 to 51% worse than desktop. That gap is the single largest source of lost revenue for most landing pages.

Every week I audit pages where the headline is unreadable on mobile, the CTA button requires scrolling past three sections, and the form fields are too small to tap. The desktop version looks perfect. The mobile version loses every visitor.

What I build instead: mobile-first. I start with the smallest screen and work up. The headline and CTA are visible without scrolling. Touch targets are large. Forms are short. Load time is under two seconds. I test on real phones, not browser previews.

Mistake 5: They Send All Traffic to One Generic Page

An email subscriber who has followed you for six months needs a different page than a cold Google Ads visitor who has never heard of you.

The email subscriber already trusts you. Give them a direct offer and a clear CTA. The cold visitor needs education, proof, and context before they will give you their email address.

Companies with 31 to 40 landing pages generate 7x more leads than those with 1 to 5 pages. Not because more pages are better. Because each page speaks to a specific audience at a specific stage of awareness.

What I build instead: dedicated pages for each traffic source and audience segment. One page for paid ads. One for organic search. One for email campaigns. Same product, different messaging and design for each entry point.

Mistake 6: They Launched and Never Tested

The first version of your landing page is a guess. An educated guess, but a guess. The data that tells you what works comes after launch, not before.

Most founders launch their page and move on to the next task. They check the conversion rate once, decide it is "fine" or "bad," and either leave it alone or start a full redesign.

Both approaches are wrong. The page does not need to be abandoned or rebuilt. It needs to be tested. One variable at a time. Headline first. Then form length. Then CTA copy. Then trust signal placement.

What I build instead: pages designed for iteration. Clean component structure. Easy-to-swap headlines. Modular sections that allow testing without rebuilding. I set up tracking from day one so the data is ready when decisions need to be made.

Mistake 7: They Used a Template and Called It Done

Templates convert at 6.6% on average. That is not bad for a starting point. But a template is a starting point, not a final product.

The problem with templates is they are generic. They were designed for every business and no business. The headline is placeholder text. The sections are in default order. The trust signals are stock photos with fake testimonials.

A template works when you are validating an idea with zero budget. It stops working when you are spending real money on ads and need every visitor to count.

What I build instead: custom pages on Framer designed around your specific offer, your specific audience, and your specific conversion goal. Every section earns its place. Every word is written for your customer, not a template's placeholder. Every interaction is built to reduce friction and increase confidence.

What I Do Differently

I do not build websites. I build conversion systems.

Every project starts with three questions: Who is visiting this page? What do they need to believe before they act? What is the single action you want them to take?

The design, copy, layout, and interactions all flow from those answers. Not from a mood board. Not from a competitor's site. Not from what looks trendy on Dribbble.

I work in Framer as an Official Framer Expert. I handle UX design, web design, SEO, custom code, copywriting, and brand design. I build landing pages, GTM websites, SaaS marketing sites, and mobile applications.

My projects start at $10,000 for websites and $4,995 for UI/UX design. I work with founders, SaaS companies, and startups who treat their website as a revenue tool, not a digital business card.

Past Work

I have built conversion-focused sites and apps for clients across SaaS, AI, e-commerce, Web3, personal brands, and mobile products. Projects include landing pages for AI platforms like vanos.ai, e-commerce stores, mobile applications like ROAD iD and DealsFinders, personal brand sites for bestselling authors and musicians, and Web3 platforms.

Every project follows the same principle: the page exists to convert, not to impress.

If Your Landing Page Is Not Converting

Here is what I suggest.

Before you redesign anything, answer these three questions:

Does your headline name the visitor's problem or the solution in plain language?

Is the CTA visible on a phone without scrolling?

Does the page have one offer, not three?

If you answered "no" to any of those, you do not need a new design. You need a new approach.

If you want to discuss your project, book a call. I will review your current page and tell you where the leaks are.

Find me on LinkedIn. Check my work on Framer or Behance. Or reach out on Upwork.

I read every message. If your landing page is costing you customers, let's fix it.

7 Website Mistakes Every Founder Makes Before Hiring a Pro