Spring is a time for cleaning up, clearing out and reorganizing, from your garden beds to your home or even your office space. But how about your internet real estate? When the last time you took an honest and thorough evaluation of your website’s design, content and functionality? Are you losing customers, hits, page ranking or your mobile audience because its been a few years since you’ve updated your website?
It is recommended by most marketers and designers that your site should be renovated every 2 to 3 years. That does not mean a rebranding of your company or a complete overhaul of your internet marketing plan, because there may be a lot to your existing plan and brand that are working well. So let’s examine some areas that would signify a time for a change.
Signs that it’s Time for a Change
1. Poor Results. You may feel that you are just not getting the results from your website that you used to or that you feel your exceptional products and services deserve. After careful analysis of your analytics, your CTR (click-through-rate), your page ranking and your conversion rate (from visitors to customers), determine what’s working and what’s not. If its poor design, confusing navigation, unresponsiveness in a mobile environment, or a lack of call-to-action, take time to correct and reboot your web presence.
2. Your Story has Changed. It’s not only normal but expected that your business will continue to grow, expand and evolve over the years, if you are successful. You may have added new services and products, opened new locations, hired new skilled team members or you are taking your business in a new direction. Does your website reflect your business’ dynamic evolution? If not, it’s time to redesign.
3. Google has lost interest. There are a number of reasons that your site may be falling on the various search engine’s page ranking. But an old site, with outdated features and coding, stagnant content or unresponsive framework, may be hurting your chances among your competitors. If you recently seen a fall from search engine’s grace, take some time with your web designer or marketing consultant to diagnose your weaknesses. It may not mean a complete redesign, but it illustrates the point that websites need consistent care to produce results.
4. Your site doesn’t cater to your Mobile Audience. With now over 28% of web traffic coming from mobile devices, you can no longer ignore catering to your surfers-on-the-go. Your website should be responsive with a fluid layout that alters with a smaller viewing space. You no longer need two versions of your site nor do you need an app unless you have a specific purpose to do so. Make sure your graphics, videos and functionality are all compatible with mobile devices (Android and Apple).
5. You no longer stand out among your competitors. Although I don’t believe in imitating your competitors’ marketing plans, as your lack of innovation becomes transparent to them as well as your target audience. I do believe though you should keep abreast of what your competitors are saying and doing. If your web presence is become stale, you may lose that edge in branding and in page ranking. If some or all of your competitors have improved their online presence, it may be time for you to catch up.
6. You lack a clear Call-to-Action. Is your site successfully converting users to leads or customers? Without engaging content and images, it will be an uphill battle not only to keep users’ attention but to motivate them to follow-through. If your website is awkward, unprofessional or confusing, that’s the impression visitors will have of your business. Good design gives any website a stronger chance of success. Does your design meet current design standards as well as motivate users? [More Info]
Startup Production’s Website Redesign
Startup Production recently updated their website after two and half years since our last redesign. It was a project that took 30+ hours, considering our extensive portfolio, numerous services, new content and growing team but the investment was worth it. Our new website is now responsive to meet the needs of the growing mobile audience; so from smartphones to tablets to oversized PC monitors, the fluid layout adjusts accordingly. Also, our content was revised and refreshed to address new services, our company’s evolving story, as well as provide answers to common questions. [Read the full story.]
We’d love to hear your feedback about our new website: www.startupproduction.com
