One of the most common questions we receive is, ‘When is it the right time for a new website?’ Look, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer, so the real question could be: Is your website showcasing your business in the best light?
You probably wouldn’t use the same tools, computer, vehicle, marketing, or business plan year after year, because things change, and things go out of date. Nowadays, everything’s changing so quickly, and that’s especially true in the digital era with technology. As a general rule, most websites stay up to date for 3 – 4 years at best.
If you’re not yet online and you have a business, (or want a business), then now is 100% the right time to get a website. If you already have a website, then it’s worth considering if it’s still fit for purpose. How do you know if it’s fit for purpose? Well, to start we’d recommend trying to answer the following 5 questions:
1. Do You Like Your Website?
It might seem like a silly question, but it’s a great place to start. Do you like your website? What does your team think? What about your friends and family? Is this a website you can be proud of? Ask yourself: What works well? What looks good? What doesn’t? Does your current website showcase you and your business in the best light?
2. Is Your Website a WordPress Website?
Wix? Squarespace? Yellow? Yes, they can often look the part, but these websites are entry-level. As if that’s not enough, with New Zealand’s own Yellow, you don’t even own your own website. With WordPress you own your website 100%, yes, no matter what happens, you have full rights to your own website, and so you should. We would expect (and suggest) no less.
1/3 of the entire internet uses WordPress, because it’s considered the world’s best. Why is it the world’s best? It’s fully customisable, high-speed, and SEO-savvy, making it Google’s preferred website platform. If you’re still using an entry-level platform, it may be time to consider moving to the world’s best?
3. Is Your Website Mobile Responsive?
More than 50% of web traffic comes from mobile devices and that will continue to grow, because nowadays everyone’s on their mobile phone. If your website’s not designed for mobile phones, where do you think 50% of your website visitors will go? To your competitor with a site that works on their phone!
Google knows phones are the way of the future, so nowadays they prioritise websites that are mobile optimised. If your website’s not compatible with mobile devices, Google will just say, ‘Get to the back of the line.’ If you don’t have a phone-friendly website, sorry to say, you’re well and truly behind the times.
4. Is Your Website Competitive?
You’re probably aware that your website is the online calling card for your business. Let’s be frank, if you were looking at your website, would you choose you, or would you go elsewhere? When you look at the websites of your top 3 competitors, how does your website fare? Sure, in the real world your business might be the best there is, but if your website doesn’t reflect that, how are people to know? Word of mouth, of course, but where will they go when they hear about you? Probably to Google, because that’s what we all do. If they like what they see, they’re far more likely to choose you. If you want to get the pick of the jobs, the cream of the crop, a leading website can make your business come out on top.
5. What’s Your Website’s Performance Like?
We’ve all been there… A website loads quickly, it’s easy to use and we find exactly what we need in seconds. Perfect. We’ve also been to outdated websites that are painfully slow to load… We can’t find what we want, and no matter how many times we click the mouse, or refresh the page, we’re getting nothing but delays, so what do we do? Abort mission!
With today’s attention spans, a high-speed user-friendly website is absolutely key. Our team can assess your page load speed, and look behind the scenes to find out how people perceive and receive your website. If you want to be fit to fly online, then a well-designed mobile and SEO optimised website is what it takes to reach new heights.
So, is your website fit to fly online? Is it showcasing you and your business in the best light? If not, perhaps it’s time to speak to us. We can design, develop and deliver a high-flying website in a matter of weeks, while you barely lift a finger. Our down-to-earth team makes the often overcomplicated world of digital marketing easy-peasy.