When It’s Time To Upgrade Your Website
May 30, 2019
Your website is an integral part of your business. It is where internet users go to learn more about what you offer. Therefore, you should take carefully consider what your website says about your business. Upgrading your website from time to time is the only way to stay relevant and effective.
Professional Calgary web development agencies can help you upgrade your website, helping you maintain a high level of customer satisfaction. When your website is well designed, visitors will be more likely to choose you over rival brands. Furthermore, they will be moved to take action when they find your site appealing. But how often should you update your website? Well, the time period can vary from industry to industry. However, a safe estimate is at least once every three years. Here are some signs to help you know if you need an Upgrade.
1. You’ve Rebranded
Over time, the needs of your customers will change and you may need to rebrand in order to adapt to these changes. Rebranding may involve changing your name, logo or offerings. It is done with the aim of creating a new and unique identity in the minds of consumers, stakeholders, investors, and competitors. Once you rebrand your business, your website should accurately represent your new brand identity as well as the products or services that you provide. Updating your website each time you make changes to your business will help you stay current and modern. When you have the same brand identity across all marketing mediums, visitors will trust you and build confidence in your brand.
2. Your Bounce Rate is High
Your bounce rate indicates how many internet users took one look at your site and left. Yes, if your website design sucks, your visitors will immediately move to the nearest competitor. And that’s bad for business! A high bounce rate most of the time signals the need to call on a Calgary web development team to upgrade your site. To know your bounce rate, keep tabs on your website’s analytics. If you discover that most of your visitors are leaving your site after viewing one page, then it is clear that they are not getting what they need quickly and easily. Factors like slow load times, outdated content, difficult navigation and poor design can increase your bounce rate.
3. You Aren’t Getting the Traffic You Want
The major reason why you have a website is to make your brand accessible to potential customers. Before your customers get to the point where they are moved to make a purchase, you will need to drive traffic to your website. If you aren’t getting the traffic you want, you may need to upgrade your website. A more responsive website design may encourage visitors to click on your site. However, if traffic to your website has declined because of technical issues or a Google algorithm update, a website upgrade may not be necessary.
4. Your Website Isn’t Secure
One of the major priority of your business should be security. If your website is hacked and the personal information of your clients is comprised, customers will lose trust in your business. Calgary web development experts advise that you revisit the framework and platform used in building your site from time to time and ensure that your site is secure for visitors. If you notice a security breach, upgrade your website to protect your visitors and your brand.
5. Your Content is Outdated
Outdated content doesn’t provide a positive user experience. In fact, your visitors may leave your site wondering if you are still in business. If your site contains old posts that are irrelevant to internet users today, do an upgrade. This simply means that you should update your content and provide information that is useful to your target audience. Not only will fresh content drive website traffic, but it will also make visitors see you as an authority in your industry.
6. Your Website Is Not Mobile Friendly
Smartphones are the new desktop and they are here to stay. Having a mobile-friendly website allows internet users to access your website at any time and place using their mobile devices. If your website does not support mobile, you risk frustrating customers and losing them to competing brands. You will need to upgrade your website if visitors cannot conveniently get things done on the website using their phones. Additionally, you can expect your Google SEO ranking to take a major hit, as the search engine prioritizes mobile-friendly websites.
7. Your Loading Speed is Slow
The easiest way to aggravate visitors is to have a website that loads slowly. Visitors want to get results as soon as they click on your website. Anything that exceeds 5 seconds is seen as extremely slow. Some of the factors that can cause slow loading includes large images, poorly performing theme and underpowered hosting. You need to take action if you find out that your website loads slowly
because it can impact your SEO score!
8. Your website is difficult to Navigate
For you to provide a great visitor experience, your website must be easy to navigate. If first-time visitors find it difficult to find information and complete actions, then your website needs an update. A simple design will make your website easy for visitors to use.
Final Thoughts
You should make it a priority to provide the best user experience for your customers. Don’t wait until you have zero traffic to upgrade your website. You will increase your opportunity to increase sales when more and more people visit your well-designed site.
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