I have been thinking lately about the more forgotten corners of the web and what happens when designers are asked to design something they don’t think will add anything to the overall impact of the website they’re working on. The particular example I’m talking about is the 404 page.

Just in case you’ve never come across one, it’s what is displayed by your internet browser when it can’t find the page of the link you clicked on. There have been some awesome examples of cute, funny and otherwise interesting 404 pages in the past. My question for today is: “Does it matter if your 404 is cool?”

My initial answer was “Not really.” After all, it’s just a page for people to see that you’ve got a broken link, right? Well, not that you should have those because you’ve checked those links a million times… Haven’t you? Of course you have. Silly me for thinking otherwise.

But then I got to thinking. The 404 page is sometimes a missed opportunity to build some more love for your site or brand. In fact, all the “error” pages that a visitor can come across can be capitalised upon. Take for example some of these great pages that build more webby love for their sites:

My friend, Rebecca Jackson of Melbourne Water, shared with us a lovely story about the 404s for her company, which I happen to think are gorgeously cute. They also shine a spotlight on a community project the company is involved in, the Frog Census, which is something everyone should know about.

There is also this particularly cute 404 page from Github. Star Wars, tentacled kitties (or at least that’s what it looks like to me) and error pages – how can you possibly go wrong?!

Oh all of the webby loves!

So, have you seen some awesome 404 pages that make you giggle or “awwwwww…”? Seen some other error pages that helped you connect with a brand just a little bit more? Share them below!

EDIT:
Since posting this, I was sent the link telling the story of the Github OctoKitty. You can read it too!

I was trawling Huffington Post this morning and came across this, so I thought I would share:

EDIT:

I came across this 404 yesterday and thought I would share. In fact, perhaps I ought to start a Pinterest board or Tumblr for these.