A recent article in Messaging Magazine predicted that 75 percent of all new Web sites will go through costly and major redesign within 12 months. It is important to keep in mind that a good web site is a continually evolving entity. In most cases, a successful web site will be updated at least monthly, and extensively reviewed and enhanced at least twice a year to bring it up to date with the current Web technology and to keep it competitive with other ongoing Web developments. So just because a Web site is redesigned does not necessarily imply it is a failure. Nonetheless, it is probably true that more Web sites fail than succeed.
Poor planning is often a problem.
Poor execution can also be a problem. Failure to design for the Web medium is a common mistake. Many companies think that putting their corporate brochure and sales literature on their Web site will provide them with a Web presence, but this practice usually fails because a good Web site is much less passive and more interactive than a print brochure. While Web page design is syntactically simple, building a professional appearance and an effective marketing message is not as simple. Poor promotion is usually the biggest problem.