7 Signs It’s Time to Redesign Your Business Website
When is the right time to redesign your website? This is a crucial question because it affects your business in ways you cannot imagine. As a startup owner, your first task is to set up a website to advertise your business and connect with people online.
You must understand that building a website is not the end. You need to maintain that website, make upgrades, and transform it into its better version, time after time. There is no situation where you can say, “that’s it, I am done; this is the final, ultimate version of my website.”
There will always be something to improve. Maybe not a complete redesign, but a change will always be necessary. Nevertheless, today we want to show you how to recognize it’s time to redesign your business website and give it a fresh look.
1. You are not following the latest trends
Even though it is true that your website should be unique and not a copy of another website, you still need to make sure you are following the latest trends. When we talk about website trends, they can fit into different categories:
- design trends;
- technology trends;
- search engine optimisation;
- backend code structure;
- third-party tools;
- website security.
All of these things change over time, and you need to make sure your website changes too.
Design trends
When it comes to design trends, this applies to the overall look of the website. While we have to one more time say that your website should not look like other websites, there are some design best practices you need to follow. For example, if you are relying on photography, research popular gallery styles today. Also, parallax scrolling is still very popular for one-page websites. These are just a couple of examples, but web design is a large field. Some of the most popular web design trends in 2022 are:
- one-page websites;
- oversized, interactive fonts;
- responsible design;
- fewer images;
- adding humor to websites;
- adding art deco motifs;
- adding collage or abstract illustrations;
- using linework;
- split screen websites.
As you can see, there are many ideas; you just need to find what fits your business the best.
Technology trends
Following the latest technologies is extremely important in web design. For example, all websites today need to be accessible. Voice search is another trend that is gaining popularity. Also, a lot of businesses are now connecting websites with a CRM.
These technologies can make a difference for your business.
Search engine optimization
It’s time to redesign your business website as soon as the Google algorithm changes. Google releases updates every year, and these updates change how we use SEO. If you are not keeping up with the latest standards, you will quickly lose your indexing rank and organic traffic. SEO always needs to match the latest standards.
Update backend code structure
If your website was built long ago, you need to hire someone to update the code structure. Coding standards change over time and significantly affect your website’s SEO and loading speed.
Third-party tools
Many businesses use third-party tools to add more functionalities to their website. These are primarily plugins other people have created. All of these plugins need to be regularly updated. If you notice that the plugin vendor is not maintaining it anymore, you need to remove it and find a replacement.
Third-party tools that are not updated with the latest version are a severe security threat.
Improving website security
The first thing that comes to mind is the SSL certificate. You need to upgrade your website from HTTP to HTTPS protocol.
You must use the latest standards for managing shopping carts and payments to run an online store. Your clients need to feel safe when shopping. eCommerce is one of the most popular businesses today, so learn from the best to improve your website.
Furthermore, constantly check your outbound links. Sometimes links become broken, or the owner of the URL changes. You don’t want to lead your customers to an unsafe website.
2. Too complex web design
Even though we briefly spoke about web design trends, this is a specific area of web design that requires more attention. A lot of websites suffer from complex layouts that only confuse their clients. While this approach was maybe good in the past when all internet things were new and unique, today, it can only push away people from your website.
The main reason for this is that the attention span of average shoppers rapidly becomes shorter. You need to entertain their desires in seconds, or they will go elsewhere.
Web design must be simplistic yet user-friendly, informative, and functional. You should remove all elements that move the focus away from the primary purpose of your website.
3. Your website is still not optimized for mobile devices
This is a huge red flag if you are running a business. Optimizing your website for mobile devices is a must today – a requirement.
The main reason is that Google first checks if a website is mobile-friendly. The number of mobile users grows daily, and people browse the web more from their mobile devices. Using a PC website on a mobile device is a nightmare, and people will just close the tab.
4. You want to engage users more
We all look at websites as static pages that show content to the user. While this is correct, web pages also have many dynamic, interactive elements. When someone arrives at your website, they don’t want just to read stuff. They want to be engaged and be free to do things on your website.
If you wish to increase user engagement, there are ways to achieve this. We already mentioned making your website user-friendly. Another strategy is to speed up your website and ensure all pages load quickly.
Another great addition is to improve the Search button on your website. Add more filters, and help users more precisely define the search keywords.
5. Your content needs an upgrade
Content is the heart and soul of every website. It is why people come to you. If you notice that your content is old and outdated, it is time to redesign your business website.
You could do this in many ways. However, the first step is to collect customer data. Research your customers and see if their needs and requirements have changed. Understand what drives them and what drives their decision to make a purchase. This should be the initial step for any content plan.
Another way to change your website is to re-evaluate how you present the content. Are you running a blog, or do you have a product catalog? For blog owners, think about small changes you can make to improve content visibility. Create a “most popular” display showing the hottest articles. Post customer comments from posts and show likes.
If the users are already satisfied with how your blog looks, try not to change too many visual details. You can re-think the use of the font and images but keep the overall layout the same. It is essential to maintain a sense of familiarity while introducing novelties.
If you are managing a product catalog, think about functionalities. Maybe you need to change product photos, add new descriptions, link products to customer reviews, etc.
6. You don’t have social media integrated with your website
Websites built ten years ago, or even before, did not have integrated social media functionalities. That is a considerable miss today.
Social media is the largest database of clients, and you want to tap into it as soon as possible. You can do that in many different ways.
First, you should share social media metrics, like the number of followers, likes, and clicks. You can also post customer comments or reviews on social media to your website.
Second, add social media icons that will take clients to your social media business page. This is a crucial step because it allows you to get more followers.
Third, add the option for your customers to share content on their social media pages. This is how you can improve brand awareness and bring more traffic to your website.
Finally, integrate your marketing campaign with social media as a channel for advertising. This is an excellent way to boost your business.
Two to three years have passed since your last redesign
Generally, you should redesign your website every two to three years. This is the amount of time required for substantial changes to happen in the web design world. While you need to maintain your website and make more minor changes regularly, you should only make more extensive updates after some time.
Too often, significant changes will create a negative effect because users won’t be able to connect with your website and establish a sense of familiarity and trust.
Recognize these signs and redesign your business website
As you can see, there are many reasons you should redesign your business website. Do not be afraid when it comes to this; change is a necessary step in the evolution of all things. Before you start the project, outline your goals and have a clear picture in your mind. Understand what you want to achieve. Best of luck in bringing some novelty to your business world and improving customer experience!
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by JP Office
