What You Need to Know for Small Business Website Updates
Have you recently been scrolling the Internet, noticing that some small business websites are absolutely gorgeous? You find that they are easy to use and you don't want to leave them.
If you have a small business website, you may want to update yours to be just like the ones you are seeing. In fact, you really should.
To stay on top of things and beat out your competitors, your website updates need to be top-notch.
But how do you do that? What do you need to know for website updates and website maintenance for small businesses? In this guide, we'll walk you through everything you need to know about website management for small businesses.
Signs It Is Time for Website Updates
Simply scrolling through the Internet and noticing that other websites seem better than yours may be a sign that it is time for website updates. However, there are some other tell-tale signs that you need to update your site. Here are a few of them.
Your Website Is Not Responsive
With millions of people scrolling the Internet every single day, you want to make sure whoever lands on your website can actually access the information. In reality, you have that website to generate leads and get more business. If it doesn't work, you won't get any business.
However, you need that website to be responsive on all platforms. With Google holding over 90% of the mobile search engine market, you know that plenty of people are using their phones to search for things—potentially your small business website. If your website is not optimized for phone searches, people who come across your site will navigate away.
So how do you figure out if this is an update you need to make? Simply go to your site on a mobile device. Does it look normal or how it should be on a phone? If not, it's time to update.
Low Search Engine Ranking
If you Google search your website, where does it come up on Google? Is it on the third page or the 53rd page?
If you are not ranking very high, then you need an update for your search engine optimization—a ranking that will help you show up higher on search engines.
To do this, you need to make sure you put time and energy into the SEO of your site to make sure Google ranks it higher. This means that more people who Google something about your business will come across yours instead of your competitors.
You Notice Your Website Has Slow Load Times
How many times do you visit a website that has a slow load time and actually waits for the website to load? Probably not often. You most likely navigate away from the site and find another.
The same will happen to your small business website if it has a slow load time.
Not only will you lose viewers to your site, but those that do stick around, are going to already have a lower satisfaction rate with your site and your services.
Since you do not want that, it is time to update your site.
The Importance of Staying Up-to-date With Website Features as a Professional Website
While there are many signs that you can look out for to see if you need to update your website, you may be wondering why it is so important to keep your website updated.
There are many reasons.
For starters, updating your website regularly will make sure you are staying up-to-date with your target audience. For instance, if your target audience is millennials and they like short-form videos, you need to adopt your website to have a few more short-form videos on it, whether it is part of a blog or on your about page.
Not only are you trying to keep up with your target audience, but you want to show that you have a professional website. By showing this, you are demonstrating that your business as a whole is professional, which will attract more customers.
To keep your site professional, you should make sure that it is not outdated. Older websites do not look professional, and will also turn people off from your business.
Lastly, having an up-to-date website will generate more business for your company. At the end of the day, the reason you have a website is to generate that business to increase revenue and overall profit. Without an updated website, this won't happen.
If you feel that time is not giving you an opportunity to focus on your site, you can always hire website design services to do it for you so that you can focus on other aspects of the business.
Website Updates for Your Small Business
If you have read this blog and realized that you really need some website updates for your small business, it is time to take action!
However, it can be daunting and difficult to figure out what you need to do yourself, especially with every other task you have on hand. Whether you need a call to help you get started with a new web design, or you simply want a website audit to know what to change, you can reach out to us at Distinct.
We have web design services for small businesses as well as website maintenance to help you stay on top of the website updates that you need to make. We want your business to stand out, and we can help you get there.
