If you have a business, you most likely have a website. It’s a great way for potential customers and clients to find you virtually, which is the #1-way people search for practically anything in the 21st century. However, if you favor the brick-and-mortar business approach, you may not have given your website design much time or even have a website at all.
Even though your business may work best in a face-to-face setting, your website is still important, and here’s why!
Why websites are important for your business
Forbes Magazine stresses the importance of websites for any business of any size regardless of industry and having an “online presence.” No matter how much business is done in your physical location, most customers/clients will take a look at your website before they do anything else. They also go on to list a variety of common reasons that you need to have a website for your business:
- A professional and attractive website will increase your credibility
- A well-thought website will showcase your brand to your target audience
- Websites are a strong tool for generating new leads
- A website optimized for SEO will bring in organic traffic
- Customer service and FAQs can be embedded into the site to improve the quality of your service team
Websites are a necessary tool for your digital marketing strategy, and relying on a Facebook page alone isn’t going to cut it (HubSpot discusses why)! Profitworks notes that “93% of business purchase decisions start with a search engine search of websites.” It’s also a great way to showcase your professionalism and what sets you apart from other organizations within your industry.
While having a website is a great first start, it’s also important to have a website that looks attractive and professional while conveying the mission, vision, and values of your organization!
Signs that your website needs a refresh
Whether it’s been a while since your website’s had a facelift or you didn’t spend much time on it in the first place, it’s probably time for an update. There are common signs that will start standing out if you’re in this position. Some of these signs include:
Users aren’t having a good experience on your website
Websites are meant to be a tool for visitors to navigate smoothly and find what they’re looking for easily. Oftentimes, websites have a navigation that doesn’t make sense. Whether things take too many clicks to get to, headings aren’t clear, or the layout doesn’t make sense, users will end up leaving websites in frustration when it’s too complicated to find what they need, leading to high bounce rates.
Another issue that you might be having with your website is that it isn’t mobile-friendly. According to a study done in 2018, around 70% of searches came from a mobile device. So, if your website isn’t responsive to recognizing mobile devices, then you should definitely consider taking a second look at your website design.
Lastly, user experience diminishes drastically when websites are slow. If your website is taking longer than 3 seconds to load, the chances that users abandon the site altogether rise significantly. Slow load times can also decrease your SEO and push your site down on SERPs.
To ensure that your website is attentive to user experience, there needs to be simple navigation and content that’s informative and engaging. Having a call to action that’s clear and “clean, visually pleasing layouts and on-brand design elements” will also increase their experience on your website!
Your website is inconsistent with your brand
Because brand changes are normal, it can be easy to lose brand consistency across platforms. Your brand should be the same whether you’re looking at your social media platforms, email promotions, physical business location, newsletters, or website.
Brand consistencies across all platforms are necessary for brand awareness and recognition for new and potential patrons. “A feeling of comfort, approval, and trust” comes with consistency and is necessary for generating new and repeat business. No matter where customers are looking, they should be getting a good idea of what your brand is!
Your website no longer fulfills the needs of your company
Another thing that can change over time is the needs of your company. Your website is a great tool for efficiently running your business, especially when we consider functionality. Adding new website features can help your organization continue to grow and provide visitors with a better experience.
What are some new features that you could or would like to add to an updated version of your website?
And more
There are a lot of reasons that you might need to redesign your website in addition to the ones that we already have listed above. Some other things to consider are:
- The security of your website
- Low conversion rates or a high bounce rate
- Lack of attention to the SEO of your website content
- Websites of your competitors looking and performing better than yours
- The design of your website looking outdated
You should ideally be giving your website a redesign around every 3-5 years to ensure that your site looks fresh, is consistent with your brand, supports the necessary functions needed for your business, and is consistent with current SEO trends!
The bottom line
If you read the above section and thought that sounded like you, then you know it’s time for a redesign. There are a variety of benefits to investing in a website update. Some of these include an increase in traffic and conversions, more leads and revenue, better SEO, and a fresh, updated look to help you stand out!
Check out some of our recent design/redesign projects!