A common misconception many businesses have is that once your #website goes live, the work is done. This is like thinking that once your house is built the work is done. If you want a house that lasts, you have to maintain it. A website is no different. If you want a website that continues to serve your business year after year, it must be refreshed from time to time.
Your website is the window of your business. Keep it fresh, keep it exciting. ~ Jay Conrad Levincon
The beginning of a new year is the perfect time to freshen up your website to make sure it's in alignment with your goals, meets the needs of your target customers, and follows current best practices.
75% of consumers judge a business’ credibility based on its web design. (via Stanford Web Credibility Research)
Having an outdated website doesn’t make your business look current or credible to potential customers. If you haven't done these 7 things in a while (or ever since owning a website), the good news is that you can get started now.
7 things you can do to refresh your website like a pro in 2021:
1. Change your website's copyright year to 2021.
I know... so simple but yet so easy to forget.
2. Review your website's analytics.
With Google Analytics installed on your website, you can learn a lot about your website performance and visitors.
Reviewing your analytics will help you discover:
Which content on your site converts the best and therefore should be promoted more
What needs to be emphasized more and what needs to be removed
What's creating challenges for visitors and how those challenges can be eliminated.
3. Add new and update old content.
Fresh relevant content makes Google happy and it helps your website to rank better. It also gives people a reason to keep coming back to your website.
So make sure you:
Update your company info (team, events/news, etc)
Remove outdated offers and information
4. Refresh your keywords.
Keyword popularity can and does change over time, so it's always a good idea to review and refresh your keywords periodically to ensure that they perform well for your business. The beginning of a new year is a great time to do this.
5. Refresh your website's design.
Ever so often you will spruce up a room in your home to give it a fresh new look right? Your website should be no different.
If your website isn't performing as it should or doesn't reflect your business today vs when you started... it's time to refresh the design!
And if it isn't mobile responsive, it's time for a redesign.
6. Double-check links.
Broken links impact the user experience because it means that people can't find what they're looking for.
Now's a good time to test the links on your site to make sure they lead to where they should.
7. Review site navigation and user flows.
This is part of your web analytics but deserving of special mention.
Website Navigation allows visitors to easily flow from one page of your website to another. This would include your menu navigation, click-through buttons, and links.
User Flows show you how visitors move through your website - where they entered, where they went, and where they exited.
A review of both will help you discover how you can improve your navigation and help visitors find what they're looking for in as few clicks as possible (recommended: 3 clicks or less).
You've taken the step to invest in your business with a website. Don't let that investment go to waste. Make sure that your website continues to represent you well, and bring in new business by keeping it fresh and up to date.
Need help refreshing your website? Contact me now.
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