It’s easy to find reasons to put off redesigning your company website. Too expensive. Too time-consuming. Too complicated.
The only logical response to all those excuses: Too bad.
Too Many Reasons, Too Little Time
Far too many business owners procrastinate when it comes to website redesign. Don’t be among them. It can hurt your business in more ways than you might imagine. Here are just a few of them:
- Google can’t find you. A lot of older websites were built in Flash. If your website is built primarily in Flash, Google and other search engines can’t crawl it. Flash files are invisible to search engines, which means your rankings will suffer.
- Prospective clients can’t see you. If your website was built on the web standards of five years ago (or more), it’s quite possible that text and images no longer display properly for some of your visitors. That makes your site – and your business – look out of step with the times.
- Mobile devices can’t display your website. Browsers on mobile devices are designed with modern web standards in mind. A lot of websites built for desktops don’t display properly on mobile screens. If you use Flash in any part of your website, it doesn’t work on iPhones or iPads.
- Your visitors can’t wait for you. People decide within seconds whether they want to further explore a website or not. If your website takes too long to load, they’re gone.
- Your clients can’t get the information they need. A lot of older websites don’t have much content. If your visitors can’t get the info they need quickly (phone number, hours of operation, list of services, etc.), chances are good that you’ve lost them.
- Visitors can’t tell if your company is open or closed. If the last update listed on your website is 2007, site visitors will wonder if you’re still in business.
- Your brand can’t counteract it. An outdated or poorly designed website not only hurts your brand, but it also affects your credibility.
No More Excuses
Be honest with yourself. Take a critical look at your site’s design every few months. Compare it to competitors’ sites for readability, graphic appeal and ease of navigation. If yours doesn’t stand up to the competition, don’t expect your site traffic to magically rise on its own.
Take the initiative to consult regularly with a web design firm to be sure your site is a leader, not a follower. Proactive web redesign means no more excuses. No more procrastination. No more imitating others. Make it your goal for others to emulate you.
