If you’ve ever typed in the wrong URL by mistake or have come across a page where the content has been deleted, then you will probably know what an Error 404 page is. They all seem to look and read the same, but a few sites have decided to approach them a little differently, making them seem less serious and stuffy.
404 pages can be made to look apologetic, cute, funny, technical and helpful, with some ticking all those boxes. As proof that they can be an outlet for any site owner’s creativity, here are four examples of how these pages can be more than just a drab vehicle to tell site visitors that they’re not where they want to be:
This effort from Kidmondo shows that all it takes is a link to the homepage and a sad face to make an effective 404 page.
Lileks went for something a little retro when they designed their 404 page and it’s all the better for it.
In this 404 page by Virgin Holidays Cruises, you have to navigate your way off a desert island.
This page from lightpostcreative needs no explaining, but isn’t that helpful.
Norwegian TV channel Tele2 has shown their invention with this effort, showing people trying to ‘fix’ the problem!
