Whether you run a blog, have an e-commerce site or advertise your services online, your business website is one of the most important tools in your marketing arsenal. Making sure it is up to date and fit for purpose is no easy job into today’s fast paced world where new tech seems to be coming onto the market every day.
That first impression counts, however.
There are numerous reasons you should now be looking at either updating your site or building a new one for your customers:
- It’s been too long
Most professionals say you should update your site and design after two or three years as the bare minimum. One way is to look at your competitors and see what they are up to. If they have the latest website design, then you may be lagging behind. That could mean you are already losing customers to them because you’re no longer so cutting edge.
- Do Your Brand and Site Match
Things can change while your website is up. You might implement changes to your brand and the look and feel of your services. If it has changed significantly in recent times, then you should work on the design of your site so that everything matches seamlessly. Brand continuity across all marketing mediums is highly important and can quickly get out of control if you don’t keep an eye on it.
- Usability
Websites generally start off as perfectly usable but items get added, menus expanded and before you know it you have a problem with an unwieldy and difficult to navigate structure. If customers are finding it difficult to get what they need from your business website, they’re more likely to go elsewhere for their purchase or service. Bad usability can leach into everything, causing visitors to navigate less easily and get frustrated with your site.
- Does Your Web Strategy Still Work or Can It Be Improved?
What may have worked two or three years ago, might not be serving you so well now. This could include something as simple as the length of your URL or the underlying tags and meta descriptions that you use on your pages. Another thing to look at is how well you are using social media on your site and how you link up your various website strategies – for instance, if you provide a local service are you doing everything you can to reach out with effective SEO to reach that audience?
- Are You Responsive?
While most businesses recognise that the world of online interaction is changing, some still haven’t done something about it. Making sure that your site is responsive on all devices is vital. We are using mobile phones more and more now and if you don’t look good on one of these devices, you could be losing valuable customers.
There could be numerous reason why you need a website overhaul. It may involve changing the underlying code so that you’re more responsive, it could mean looking at the content and critically evaluating it or you may need to review the entire structure and decide whether it could really be done better.
If you’re currently wondering whether your business needs a new website, you’ve probably already answered your question. It might just be time to go for an overhaul and put yourself ahead of your competitors.