Website redesign - why and how often?

There are many reasons why you should refresh the design of your website on a regular basis. Some are very obvious and some not so. Below are some top reasons for doing so.

Websites date

Websites follow fashion and trends (like clothes or haircuts!) and can date very quickly in terms of satisfying the user’s requirements.

This is sometimes caused by new technologies being released, internet speed increasing or simply people experimenting with new techniques and functionality. Other times it’s because the web is maturing and web developers/designers understand better what users want.

You may remember when Flash splash pages were the rage and you could not enter a website without seeing the company’s logo flying round the screen. After a while it became accepted that this put an unnecessary barrier between the user and the brand and these intro pages have (thankfully!) become much less common.

Stay ahead of your competition

Having the best looking website in your industry is great and you should be proud to be setting the benchmark, but expect within 6 months that your competitors will be doing something very similar or even better.

This is why it is so important that as soon as you launch your website you are making notes on what you want to do next, what you missed and what would you would love to introduce. Let your users and clients tell you what they would like to see. Empower them and let them help you.

Website users are impatient and you only have a few seconds to WOW them. You need to make sure you are offering what your competition isn’t, otherwise they will go elsewhere. Being ahead of your competitors is vital – you must do today what your competitors are doing tomorrow to maintain an edge.

A well timed redesign will enable you to steal a march on your competition so you are not playing catch-up.

The current design does not reflect your brand

Consistency is hugely important in winning new business and when people visit your website they will see it as a reflection of your company. If the website is out of date, amateurish and confusing it is likely they will make the same assumptions about you. On the other hand if the website is professional, engaging and offers value, they will look at you in the same way and ultimately make contact.

Using the website to send out a strong message about yourself will build confidence amongst your clients and potential clients.

A site that reflects where you’re heading, not where you have been

Without sounding a bit cliché, this is an important point. Website design follow trends and so do business principles. It is important that this is reflected in the website. Businesses evolve, take different directions and if your website is more then 18 months old it is probably not a true reflection of where you are heading.

Launching a new website offers you the chance to re-address your message and plan for the future. Keeping your clients up to date is essential in gaining their trust and driving repeat business.

Keep the site fresh

If you have a content management system then you have NO reason in not keeping the website up to date! Ideally, you should be aiming to update your website with something at least once per week.

Who wants to go to a website where the content has not changed in three months? Repeat visitors are very important and regularly refreshed content helps shape their perception of you.

Content Management Systems are an investment, but one that will invariably prove more cost effective than a static website over time.

Attract more visitors

A new site redesign is the perfect excuse to contact old and new clients. Send them an email that drives them to the new site and encourage people to tell their friends and contacts about you by offering incentives. You might be very pleasantly surprised how many business relationships this can re-ignite.

You can always improve conversion

For many, an effective website is one that converts potential leads to sales. Look at your website stats (if you don’t have access to these, ask your agency to install a free package such as Google Analytics) and see what your users are actually doing. Optimise the most popular areas of the site and improve the areas that users aren’t using. If you see that the majority of your users are leaving as soon as they hit your homepage, look at the design and content on that page and improve it!

Make the site easier to use

We have all been to websites and struggled to find what we have gone there to find. Just because you know where everything can be found does not mean the next person who arrives at your website does. Users should be able to find what they are looking for within a couple of clicks.

Usability and clear sign-posting is key and often the difference between a poor, good and great website.

Communicate with your clients more effectively

The content on your website should be relevant and specifically written for the website. There is no point in simply reusing text from an old brochure, leaflet or advert etc. This is a common mistake and can be the sole reason why users switch off.

If you are not comfortable writing content for your own website, contact a copywriter who is an expert in writing copy for the web. People don’t read a website like printed material, and will typically scan the pages trying to determine if the website is of any use. Only once they decide if it’s of use will they start reading further.

You therefore need to make the content short, punchy and to the point. Anything other than this will inhibit the message you are trying to communicate.

Simon Evans.