There’s nothing quite like driving a new car off the lot. The new car smell, the smooth ride, and knowing that everything works, fills you with a sense of excitement. Unfortunately, after a while the new car smell is replaced by other smells, the ride starts to get bumpy, and your tires and brakes need changing.

The same is true for your website. When it’s new, it’s got the latest technology, all your information is current, and the design is state of the art. But websites are like cars. Maybe your office has moved, you’ve added a new line of products, or you’ve had turnover on your team.

Websites are like cars – you need to keep them maintained. So we’ll review the three areas of your site that you want to ensure are updated: content, technology, and design.

Content:

Let’s start with the copyright date. Have you ever gone to a website and noticed that the copyright date was from the prior year (or prior decade)? Having an outdated copyright date on your website is like having an outdated inspection sticker on your car – it shows that you haven’t really looked at it in a while. So visitors may wonder if the content is even correct. If they’re looking at your site because they’re considering purchasing something from you, this could be a turn-off. It’s an easy thing to fix, so take a moment to ensure that your site has a current copyright date.

Have you ever called a company to get details on a service that’s listed on their website,  only to find out that they no longer offer it? Or worse, you’re ready to order and find out that the actual price is much higher than what’s on their website? It’s a huge turn-off.

Fortunately, content changes are the easiest to fix. So it shouldn’t take more than an hour or two to review your website and maybe another couple of hours to make the updates. If you can, perform this review every six months. It will make your business more reputable and more professional.

Technology:

Some website platforms, such as Squarespace and Wix, automatically update their platforms behind the scenes. This is both good and bad as you don’t have to do anything, but you often aren’t notified when the updates are made and your website might randomly break.

WordPress has periodic updates to its core, plug-ins, and themes. We recommend that these be updated at least once per month. If you’re uncomfortable doing these updates yourself, find yourself a good maintenance plan.

Design:

Have you ever seen a car that looks like one you used to drive 20 or 30 years ago? Even if you’re not a car person, you can probably tell an older car from a new one. The same is true for websites.

Most website designs look fresh for about 3 to 5 years. After that, your site may start looking dated. Sometimes, minor tweaks can give your site a facelift so you can get more mileage out of it.  Other times, a redesign can provide a better user experience and/or help with search engine optimization (SEO).

In Summary:

Neglecting your website can have the same effect as neglecting your car – it might break down at an inconvenient time. So periodically review your content, make sure that your technology is updated, and check your design against other sites every three to five years.

If you have any questions about how to make updates or want someone to point you in the right direction, call us at 978-707-9583 or schedule a complimentary consultation. We’ll help you ensure that your website is current.