There are many reasons why you might have a website. Perhaps you are a business owner, maybe you are a blogger, or just share information about your hobby. Whatever your reason for having a website, you will need to make sure it is up to date.
This is because websites are not frozen in time. Like anything, they grow old, clunky, and in need of repair. You could be forgiven for believing that once your website is live, you can forget about the systems that run it or the design that has served you well until now. However, the reality is that as your website grows older, it may need revamping to remain secure, aesthetically pleasing, and easy to use. You can revamp your website with the help of an expert like SMBTechExpert.com that will give your website a new or eye-catching look and attract the attention of new customers.
Naturally, not all websites are created equally. For example, if you only made a website last year, you probably won’t need to make the same sweeping changes as a website that is a decade old. Similarly, if you only use your website for personal use, the appearance may not matter as much as if you relied upon it for your income.
In certain cases, it may be easier to delete your old website and start from scratch to implement the alterations you require.
You need to address any issues before they become worse to prevent any lasting problems. These lasting problems can leave your website vulnerable to attack from cyber hackers, who use these weaknesses as a way of stealing data and corrupting your website.
Therefore, you need to recognize if and when it is time to revamp your website:
If your current design is dated, consider starting from scratch
The most fundamental way of recognizing if your website is due an update is if it looks visibly dated. If you created your website over a decade ago, it is instantly noticeable. You may not mind if your website is just for personal use, but you need to update your website if you are running a business through it.
This is because customers will draw an instant conclusion that your company has neither the attention to detail nor the resources to create an attractive website, which does not bode well for the quality of your products or services.
Your website can show its age in other ways, too. For example, if you find that your website crashes regularly, then it could be time to overhaul it. After all, no one wants to visit a site that is a source of frustration.
These issues can cause lasting reputational damage if left unchecked.
This is an unnecessary risk to take because you can create a quality website using a hosting service like WordPress. Furthermore, it is often easier to create a new website from the ground up than to persevere with a dated one, as these website creation services are easy to use.
Of course, you may not have time to create your own website. However, if your time is limited and you want to create a high-performing website, you could hire a specialist to create and maintain it for you. For example, ALT Agency, a WordPress agency will specialise in WordPress development and design and can help you to create a secure website that will attract – rather than repel – visitors.
You will need to overhaul your website if your security is weak
One of the most pressing reasons why you should regularly revamp your website is to prevent cyber-attacks. A common misconception of web design is that you don’t have to worry about its security once you have created a site. The older websites get, the more vulnerable they are to the latest cyber threats.
This is why you should regularly update your website to withstand increasingly complex cyber threats like malware and ransomware.
This threat is made worse if your website is for your business. If the site were to be hacked and go down for a day, you will at best suffer reputational damage and, at worst, risk losing your customers’ private details.
This would cost you a lot of time and money and even risk your business collapsing. Therefore, regularly maintaining your website’s security is a must if you are to protect it from cyber threats.
If you want to attract customers, updating your website is a good place to start
If you are struggling to attract customers to your business, one reason could be the quality of your website. To ascertain whether this is the case, consider using metrics to measure how long visitors stay on your website.
You may find that visitors only stay on the site for a few seconds before clicking off to another tab.
The obvious solution is to ensure your web design is as attractive and intuitive as possible to encourage your prospects to stay on the site.
Listen to customer feedback, is your website easy to use?
A great approach when you’re deciding whether to update your website or not is to seek the feedback of your users. If you run a business, encourage your customers to submit reviews about their experience of your site and whether there is anything that could be improved upon.
Often, they will list details you hadn’t ever considered before and offer constructive criticism you can use to improve the site in the future. This will also improve customer experiences because they will feel valued and listened to.
Think long and hard before radically changing the design
Of course, it is not always the right time to update your website. Recognizing when it is best to keep your web design the same is as important as knowing when it is time to change it.
For example, if you run a popular ecommerce business, chances are your customers are used to the layout of your website. They find it intuitive to use and have no particular qualms about it. As a result, there is no reason why you should risk confusing them by completely overhauling your web design.
Making changes for the sake of it is pointless and can frustrate your site visitors. In the long run, this could cause more damage than it is worth, so think carefully before changing your web design.