How to Tell if It’s Time to Revamp Your Old Website
WHILE THERE is no specific expiry date on a website, there comes a time when a refresh and a revamp of your website makes good business sense. So, what are some key indicators that your website is no longer making the cut?
Is Your website looking old?
People can tell if a website feels outdated or not. This is important because your website is the face of your business online. If it’s outdated, it reflects poorly on your business.
Additionally, studies have shown that customers have more trust and are willing to spend more with businesses with better-designed websites.
Do you have a blog?
Adding fresh, new content keeps people coming back to your website.
Adding a blog to your site shows customers you are real. They can see straight away you know your industry. Offer advice and information that can help your potential clients best enjoy their time with you.
Linking your blog properly to your Facebook page is one of the most powerful ways to get more customers available today
Are you ‘getting by’ with old technology?
Website technology changes almost every day. If your website was built even two years ago, odds are its technology is out of date already.
Your site may have been great for its time, but design standards and technology are widely different today. Monitors have gotten larger, smartphones and tablet screens have gotten smaller, so newer sites need to adjust. New sites can be more engaging and interactive because users are more sophisticated.
Does your website work on mobile devices?
If your website isn’t responsive - meaning it can adjust to different screen sizes – you will lose visitors in droves. Around 70% of website traffic is by smart device these days.
Google is now actively penalising websites which are not mobile phone friendly.
If your website isn’t mobile-friendly, people will click right back out and visit someone whose website looks great on their mobile phone.
Can You easily update your website yourself?
There is no reason you shouldn’t be able to make small changes on your own website instead of paying a web developer every time you want to update an image, a product or phone number.
Is Your Home page really old fashioned?
Your home page is extremely important for your website, not only for website rankings but for user experience. If you have a fancy splash screen that comes up before your home page, then chances are Google isn’t looking past this page to rank your site, effectively ‘blocking’ your site from Google.
Refreshing your website should include removing any flash splash screen and replacing it with a normal web page with well optimised tags, titles, content and images.
Is your website linked properly to Facebook and other social media?
Social media barely existed when many websites were built. Your website needs to integrate with social media – you can be sure your competition is already doing it.