When was the last time you looked at your business website through a visitor’s eyes? If your website’s look hasn’t changed recently, consider the impression it makes on first-time visitors (and prospective customers) who see the same content and graphic elements time and again. A bored visitor isn’t a repeat visitor.
You may have loved the design of your website when it was first launched. It may even have seemed “perfect” to you. But in the world of web design, perfection is the enemy of progress.
Credibility and Functionality
Businesses depend on their websites to attract visitors and generate sales leads. So they need to tend those sites as if they were watering the lawn (you spent money on sod, you need to take care of it). This means updating both the look and content on a fairly regular basis.
Fresh design and content keeps your website credible (and, by extension, does the same for your business). It sends the message that you value your role as a provider of the kind of information people are looking for. Whether the new design includes scrolling text, eye-catching imagery or other design elements, it helps to keep your site useful and relevant in changing times.
Updating your site is also an opportunity to make sure everything is working properly. Maybe content on the site is packed too densely for easy reading or links are too difficult to easily spot. Remember, the slightest problem—broken links, slow-loading images—can discourage first-time visitors from wanting to learn more. Any low-performing element can cost you valuable page views.
Changes in Customer Taste and Technology
There’s also the need to keep up with changing client needs and evolving technology. Customer tastes change over time. Your website may have been going along fine up to now, but if the people you seek to convert prefer the latest search tool or more user-friendly automated forms, how long will they stay on your site?
In general, visitors come to a site three or four times before making the decision to reach out to the business. They will only come back if content is fresh and the design is appealing (and completely functional).
Finally, consider your competition. How often does their website undergo a redesign? Are they outpacing you with a fresh look and feel every few months? Again, look through a visitor’s eyes and decide which website will attract more attention.
Some businesses launch a website and don’t consider a re-launch until five years later. In a digital age that moves at light-speed, that’s much too long for your business to wait.
