How to Create Custom Error 404 Pages
You have seen these pages all around internet. Usually, visitors doesn’t like when they come on 404 error page and they leave web site very soon after it’s shown. Of course, this is usually for standard 404 error pages with only text displayed or nothing much more. Unfortunately, these standard pages are included into many web sites or blogs on internet. In this post, I will show you how your 404 Error page should look.
Custom 404 Error pages are your own, unique pages. They need to be perfectly designed, specially for your web site or blog. Customized 404 Error pages can easily improve your site ranking, and gives you more loyal visitors to your web site or blog. Most visitors doesn’t exit professionally designed pages, they browse through them or search your site from them.
What Should Every 404 Error Page Include ?
- Search Form – Specialized and your own search engine form. Visitors might directly search through your site for special topics they have search before they come on your site. Note that you should include search form on your error page definitely.
- Most Popular / Archived contents – 404 Error page should include your site’s most popular post list or archived and categorized posts. Visitors might search deeply into your site with these links from your customized page.
These two factors above are definitely must-have for every customized 404 Error page on the internet. But I recommend you to use your imagination to create good, professional and mostly unique error page. Also, I’d recommend you to use fun graphics or descriptive relaxed text on your error page – you don’t want to scare your visitors with it right?
Good Error Page Examples are:
MMOsite – Very professional and good error page, with all informations included in right place!
Apple – Apple have also very good and professional error page. Looks and sounds good!
Microsoft – Microsoft uses error page to redirect it to Windows Live Search of course. Looks and works good through.
ProBlogger – ProBlogger have very good error page. All basic important informations are included, with search form too.
I will not display bad error page examples here. Every error page without main factors listed above are bad and they doesn’t have full functionality for your site. 404 Error pages can be easily edited from your hosted web site. Usually, you can edit these pages through your hosting control panel. Ask your hosting provider for more informations about how to exactly change and edit your error pages!
Nice, I actually wrote a blog post on Optimizing/Monetizing your 404 page.
Search Forms/Archives are very useful, so a user can look through, and if he finds something interesting, you got yourself a subscriber :)
You might want to try running a grammar / spelling check before trying to post an instructional piece of information. It often makes you look like you don't actually know what you're talking about and thus causes people to leave before actually gaining the help they require.