3 Key Indicators That Your Website Needs a Change

New websites are popping up on the internet every second. The name of the game is creating a consumer-friendly platform to encourage user action. If a website fails to meet these demands, visitors will have no problem clicking away.

Simply having a website with product listings or content doesn’t cut it anymore. Brands must keep up and adhere to constantly-changing consumer trends. As fast as the eCommerce landscape moves, it can be extremely difficult to know when it is time to upgrade your platform.

Let’s talk about three big signs that make it clear your website needs some work.

1. Old Content

Are the pages on your website getting less and less views?

If your web traffic is seemingly on the decline, perhaps the biggest culprit is outdated content. While some of it may seem like it is still relevant, it could be doing more damage than you think.

Regardless of how well-crafted your material might be, if it was created years ago, it can make your entire site look sloppy and lazy. There is so much content produced on the web every day that the older your piece gets, the less it gets noticed. Think of it like a billboard you see on your daily commute. After a while, you stop noticing it and only pay attention when something new shows up. The same concept applies to content on your website.

Google will also pick up on stagnant content. From the launch of Panda in February 2011 (which identified websites that don’t offer valuable content to the users) to the latest Penguin integration (which altogether devalues low quality sites in order to make backlinks from them worthless), Google has left no stone unturned in dealing with spam. Keep in mind, only 8% of users make it past the first page on a Google search. Being on that page can make or break your brand.

Basically, a website is only as good as the content within it. Putting in the time and resources to showcase quality material is one of the best things you can do for your platform, and everyone that visits it.

2. Not Mobile Functional (Or Friendly)

In recent years, mobile has become the more common user preference over desktop.

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Failing to make your website mobile-friendly can be a very costly mistake. Even more, Google punishes websites in the search rankings that do not meet mobile-friendly criteria.

The bottom line is that most users are switching to mobile searches and have come to expect a properly formatted website. If you haven’t already done so, it’s time to opt for a responsive website. A responsive website is one that can easily recognize the device being used to access it and adjust accordingly.

And if you’re selling a product or a service, giving your visitors the option to buy from anywhere is crucial for your conversion rate. In fact, 57% of users say they won’t recommend a business if it has a poorly designed mobile website. When building or redesigning your site with a mobile-first focus, consider a platform such as Shopify, which combines app integration, blogging and shopping cart functions into one readymade solution.

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It’s safe to say that mobile browsing is not going anywhere (other than upwards) anytime soon. Making sure your website is up to speed and easy to navigate is essential in giving your customers what they want.

3. Sluggish Page Loading

We’ve all heard the numbers on how significantly slow website loading times can affect conversions. It’s recommended that a web page should take no longer than two seconds to load.

There are many factors that play into slow loading times. Luckily, a good deal of the remedies are fairly simple. One of the most common sources of slow loading times is failure to optimize images. Full-sized images can require a good deal of bandwidth when loading. Therefore, resizing can do a lot to cut down on load times.

Start by looking at your image tag to set the height and width. Then, be sure that you scale the image proportionally so nothing gets stretched or skewed. You might consider changing the format, as this can help reduce the file size.

Another reason could be that you’re using too much fancy flash. Flash is extremely bulky and can slow down your platform like crazy. Also, it usually isn’t mobile friendly. A lot of websites are switching to HTML 5 as a Flash alternative.

Poor hosting can also pose a serious threat to your load times. Basically, you get what you pay for. If your main source of revenue is your website, it’s recommended that you spend a minimum of $25 per month for high quality WordPress hosting. Keep in mind, hosting is the foundation of every aspect of online business. It affects your SEO, rankings, ads, emails, etc. Upgrading to a better hosting service will eventually pay for itself.

Users today can be more impatient than ever. Loading time can play a huge role when influencing consumers’ decisions. Do yourself a favor and put it to the test every so often to see if it’s time to take action.

Over to You

Users today are exposed to more information and marketing messages than they know what to do with. In order to gain their valuable attention, website owners need to do everything they can to adopt a consumer-centric approach. Remastering your website could very well be one of the best things you ever do for your business.

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