Seeing your web traffic drop off for no good reason? Or sick of seeing the same site layout you’ve had for the last five years? Websites need to redesign every few years to stay competitive and current – read below to find out why and determine if it’s the right time for a change.
#1: The Design is No Longer Current.
You might think of your website as evergreen, especially if you kept your design simple and largely avoided the trendy bits and bobs your designer offered to add. However, just because you don’t have the web equivalent of a fanny pack and a mullet doesn’t mean you can avoid changing it up for the next 10 years.
When should you redesign a website?
Thanks to constant digital innovation and different coding techniques, we see big changes in even the very basics of design. Design trends come and go, too – the placement of a menu, font choices, or the layout of the visuals goes in and out of vogue every few years.
If your site is looking old or you want to take advantage of a new design trend, it’s time for a website redesign.
#2: It’s Painfully Slow to Load and Doesn’t Work on Mobile.
We’ve all been there – tapping refresh over and over, trying to get a website to load for us. But, unfortunately, if your page loads slowly, you’re practically throwing your sales down the toilet – our culture expects immediate gratification, or we move on.
Besides convenience, there is another reason to keep your page speeding along – Google likes it.
Time for a bit of geek-speak. Google’s algorithm uses AI technology to determine which websites should rank where on their results pages. Since the AI and machine learning technology is experiencing near-constant innovation, Google updates their algorithm often, so they are the undisputed champ when it comes to giving us the search results we want with a very high accuracy rate.
Last summer, Google released their “Page Experience Update,” which measures and considers a page’s loading speed, security, mobile-friendly, and much more when it’s building its ranks.
Note that “mobile-friendly” is very important to Google these days.
What is the purpose of a redesign?
With almost 55% of internet use taking place on a mobile device in 2021, your website needs to be fully functional and attractive for various screen sizes.
Your page needs to be quick and responsive to rank well on Google and see higher conversions – if it’s slow to load, it’s time for a redesign.
#3: The Navigation isn’t Intuitive.
Think of your website as a path for your customers toward sales and conversions. You’re using content to draw them into the ultimate goal – making them a regular customer.
If someone is looking at your website, they’ve followed the breadcrumbs and are interested in your brand. If your website is simple to navigate with a clear layout, menu options, and buttons that are easy to press on any device, you’ll improve the chances they stay on your website longer and improve your chances of them taking action.
If users aren’t sticking around on your page for long or leaving when they hit specific points, it’s time to redesign.
#4: Your Business Strategy has Changed.
Business strategy isn’t static – management revisits their strategies regularly to determine what’s working and what isn’t. A website can survive minor tweaks to the business or marketing strategy without needing a complete overhaul. Still, if your business strategy has shifted significantly, your website will no longer align with your overarching goals.
Your site needs to reflect your current strategy and offerings so it can work to inform and attract your potential customers to learn more.
If your business strategy has changed significantly, it’s time to get a new website reflecting its goals.
#5: The Features Stopped Working.
A website shouldn’t just look bright and shiny – the “guts” of it need to work well to keep people interested in sticking around to read more. Sometimes, your code can break, become outdated, and stop working, if they ever worked at all.
A shopping cart or a contact form that doesn’t load is going to guarantee that any users you’ve convinced to buy won’t be able to, and those are conversions you can’t afford to lose.
If you have broken links or features that don’t work, it’s time to redesign your site.
#6: Your Competitors Upped Their Game.
When it comes to digital presence, the competition is fierce. Most business owners know exactly what their top 5 competitors are doing online because gaining a competitive advantage is the highest priority. We want to know how to get it, where our competitors have it, and how we can bridge the gap to offer an even better experience than theirs.
Because technology changes quickly, competitors often update their pages to keep up. If you notice certain digital trends across the players in your industry, it’s time to move – you want to be an early adopter, not a lagger, so that you can offer the best product possible to your consumers.
You don’t need to get a new website just because your competitor did, but if their changes boost their Google rank and push you down the list, you’re going to want to regain some ground – an updated website can help.
If your competitors have top-of-the-line websites and yours looks outdated, it’s time to redesign.
#7: It’s Not SEO-Optimized.
Maybe you put together a quick website yourself or used an inexpensive designer who didn’t optimize your website to improve your Google search results. Search engine optimization, SEO, needs to be integrated into your website if you hope to make it to the top.
If your website isn’t SEO-friendly, run, don’t walk to get your website redesign underway with an SEO expert. From meta tags to technical SEO, they will build you a great-quality website that will help you see an instant improvement in your web traffic.
Though you’ll likely see a boost quickly, SEO is a marathon, not a sprint. To see significant results over the long run, you’ll need a strong content strategy that includes regular updates to keep your website current.
If your SEO game is non-existent, it’s time to redesign with an SEO expert.
How do I Redesign my Website?
The cost of redesigning a website doesn’t have to be a deterrent. Though you’ll want to head to a design and SEO expert to build a strong site that will last, you can find cost-effective services that will be well worth the money spent.
Interested in learning about our website redesign services in Hamilton, Ontario? Contact us here to get a free quote and the answers to all of your redesign questions!
