Now more than ever, consumers rely on the internet for information and sales, regardless of industry. In turn, as a business, you rely on your website to work as your 24/7 sales team. And if your website isn't delivering the expected conversions? Well, Houston, we've got ourselves a problem.
It's easy to cast the blame on the consumers, but, in this consumer-run society, it's much more productive to analyze your website for the three telltale signs of a site in need of some TLC.
- It's Outdated
- Drop in Analytics
- Decrease in Page Ranking
Most experts in web development recommend a full website redesign every 3-5 years. We know, we know. That seems a little soon, especially after pouring your heart and soul into the last design for a website that you love. However, technology is ever-changing and the way consumers are perceiving information is changing just as quickly. Staying in range of these upward trends will guarantee the success of your website. Put it this way: There may be a feature available now that will take your biggest selling point a step further, setting you apart from your competitors.
Speaking of your competitors, have any of them redesigned their site lately? If consumers are sticking with technology and design trends, you may be losing those precious conversions to a competitor with a better website, even if you have (and you absolutely do have) a better business.
On the other hand, your website could be outdated simply because it reflects an older version of your business. If you've added or removed services or departments, changed your industry angle, or done a full rebrand, it's time for a redesign!
When you notice a drop in the frequency of conversions coming from your website, you may sneak a peek at your analytics for some answers. If your bounce rate (number of people that click on your site and leave immediately) is steadily rising and your Click Through Rate (number of pages viewed in an average session) is dropping, this is your giant blinking sign telling you it's time to look deeper. Experts say you have three seconds to engage your audience, otherwise they're skedaddling right out of there.
There's a multitude of reasons why your analytics could be showing some negative numbers, but the one thing they all have in common is that they're all key components in a successful website. One reason could be that outdated design we talked about before. But what about your copy? Your web copy has to stay updated and reflective of you, but it also has to strategically convey your marketing message. If your copy's no longer doing that, it's back to the drawing board, friend. Another reason could be the responsiveness of your website, which again goes back to outdated, but can explain dropping analytics. Consider that most consumers use their smart phones to use the internet and do a quick search. Your site has to be mobile responsive, load quickly, and showcase readability in these scenarios, or this alone can make your bounce rate sky rocket and keep from those sweet, sweet conversions.
If you own/run a website, you've surely heard the term SEO (search engine optimization) more than you can probably handle, which just goes to show how important it is to your overall marketing success. This is why most web developers like us make an effort to consider SEO from the first stage of website production. Top search engines like Google and Bing are constantly changing and tweaking their SEO guidelines in an effort to bring their users the best search results. For businesses, this means that your site has to stay on top of the trends to compete with the thousands of other results that could end up on the first page.
Since SEO is also considered in the design process for optimal results, an outdated design could also mean outdated SEO strategies. If you've noticed a significant drop in page ranking over time, you may want to consider a redesign.
Redesign or Refresh?
Noticing any of these things on a smaller scale with a newer site? You may just need a little refresh. A website refresh could involve changing colors, freshening up that content, or reorganizing your existing menu/pages. If you want to go further than that, though, we'd recommend a full redesign.
Whatever you're looking to do to take your website to that next, more successful step, we're here for you. Start a conversation today to get started.