Every business needs an effective website. It is the center of all your online marketing activities. Without an effective website, you will never see the significant results of an online advertising campaign.
You are losing money every day by not designing your website. According to a new survey by Blue Fountain Media, 81% of internet users think making less of a business if the website is not updated, and 39% would think twice about using a product or service if the website is not fresh, user friendly and current.
Here are the 10 signs that you seriously consider upgrading your website.
1- You’re embarrassed to give out your URL
Your website is the online face of your company and you should be proud that it represents you. If you are not, this is a clear sign that it is time for a new website.
2- It looks outdated
Sometimes, looks do matter. While it’s important that your website works seamlessly, it also needs to look fresh and modern, not like it’s stuck in a bygone digital era.
3- Your site is old and does not make a good first impression
Although there is no hard and fast rule on how long a website should last, there have been many advances in technology, best practices and how Google ranks websites in recent years. Years, it could probably benefit from some revision.
First impressions are everything. The truth is that you only have 3 seconds to make an impression on a website visitor. If your website does not make a good impression within this time frame, you will likely miss opportunities.
4- Your website is not trustworthy or credible
Your website is not trustworthy. It looks sketchy. People are afraid to buy anything on your website, because “they don’t know who you are”. Poor website designs can dramatically increase this feeling. 48% of people believe website design as the number one factor in deciding the credibility of a business.
5- Your site is not mobile friendly or responsive
According to Statistica, 52% of all website traffic comes from mobile devices, and Google is now basing its rankings on the mobile rather than the desktop version of a website. A responsive website is in nowadays’s world must.
6- Your site is not delivering the traffic, leads and conversions you expect
If your website is getting a little long in the tooth but still gets results for your business, there’s probably no reason to mess with a good thing. But if you’ve seen significant drop-offs in traffic and leads, your visitors are clearly not finding what they’re looking for, and you might want to consider a site upgrade to bring them back.
7- All your competitors have newer websites
While it is true that you should do what is right for you instead of blindly following what others do if your competitors have websites that look and work better than yours, you will have a significant disadvantage. If your site lags behind your competitors, consider an update to push you to the top of the package.
8- Your site does not offer an excellent user experience
A successful website is all about pleasing your users. If your site is difficult to navigate and doesn’t offer attractive, valuable content, your users will leave. While small customizations can improve the visitor experience on an existing website, a new website designed with user experience at the forefront is often the best solution.
9- Small changes are difficult or impossible to make
Making small changes or updates to your site, such as adding a blog post, updating an event, or changing a product description, should be easy for any employee to achieve. If your website is built on a platform that is difficult to use or that is needed by third parties to make even the simplest updates, you should consider a new website that is designed for user-friendly content management system (CMS).
10- Your website is on Wix, Weebly, or GoDaddy
Your website is on Wix, GoDaddy, Weebly, or something comparable. These websites are limited. The design interface is limited. The SEO functionality is limited. And, it looks cheap.
We can look at a website and automatically tell it is a Wix website. While these platforms are great for small businesses to put something up (instead of nothing), it fails to build trust and credibility. And since we’re being honest, most business owners are not website designers. You may struggle with color-schemes, layouts, and miss simple things that a web designer will not.
11- Your website does not have a blog
Although content is king, your website does not have a blog. Perhaps, the platform your website was built on is incapable of having a blog. Or, you just do not know how to install it. Either way, you should have a blog.
If the 10 signs above don’t fully describe your website, but you’re still looking for improvements, here are a few things you can achieve in the meantime:
Update your SEO
Replace stock photography
Improve your content
Upgrade to HTTPS
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Linda Nil, was born and raised in Istanbul. She graduated from Istanbul University, studied Anthropology. In California State University studied English and communication.
She started to work as a correspondent, editor, producer and presenter for major media companies, was in the creator team for the biggest content provider company in Turkey in early 00’s.
She moved to New York City in mid 00’s, found New York Design Studio, started and continue to help hundreds of small and big companies and people for their needs being in the digital world.