Here at Barta Media Group, we talk a lot about how having a website can do wonders for improving and growing your business. But what about when your website can actually hurt you? Well, the biggest example of this is when your website reaches a certain age. You notice it slowing down, links are breaking, the content is outdated, and the design has fallen out of style.
After a point, failing to fix these issues may have you leaving money on the table, i.e. when visitors arrive at your site then immediately hit the back button in search of someone that feels more credible.
Taking your website through a revamp will address all these issues and more. It affords you the opportunity to reevaluate your company’s brand, its services, and add new features to your website.
Before Revamping
But before you go through the revamp process, you have to first ask yourself a few seemingly simple questions.
- Why are people visiting your website in the first place?
- What purpose does your website serve?
- How can the design and functions of my website reflect my company in the best possible light?
If you never asked yourself these questions when you first launched your website, a revamp will give you a second chance to get it right. So take the time to figure out what your visitors are really interested in and how your website can better cater to their needs. Figuring this out early on will help you determine what elements on your current site are holding you back and what you can include during the revamp.
Keep Your Branding Consistent
If you decide to take the opportunity to rebrand your company during the revamp, understand that it will add a significant amount of time to the overall process.
Rebranding typically involves getting a new logo, new color scheme, page elements, and graphics. You’re essentially giving your company a new identity to live by, so it requires a lot of careful thought. The key to a successful rebrand is keeping it consistent throughout all your marketing channels.
Keep Your Target Audience in Mind
As important as it is to design your website to match your brand, it’s just as important to design it to appeal to your target audience. For example, a website primarily visited by seniors should probably have a larger font size so it’s easier to read.
You may also want to consider what you’re competitors are doing to appeal to their visitors. You don’t want your audience to feel like you’re out of step with your industry.
Identify Your Website’s Stress Points
Stress points are the areas of your site where your visitors get confused, lost, or just leave. Knowing where the stress points lie on your current site will help prevent you from replicating them on your new one. How do you know where your stress points are?
Well, one way to figure this out is by using Peek User Testing. All you have to do is submit your website’s URL, and they’ll find someone to use your site and record what they have to say about it.
A simpler way would be to pull up your site’s analytics and see what pages have the highest bounce rate. A page with a high bounce rate tells you that a user is leaving the page shortly after arriving at it. You could also use a heat mapping software like Crazy Egg, to see where users are scrolling and clicking on your website.
However you go about it, knowing your stress points is very important for ensuring a good user experience.
Ready for Improvement
After you’ve accounted for everything on this list, you’ll be ready for the website revamp process. Now all you have to do is hire the right web design company to make it all happen.