Why Business Owners Should Update Their Websites
Just about every 21st-century business owner knows the importance of having a company website. But when was the last time that you updated the content on yours? In an effort to stay relevant on social media, have you been neglecting your company’s webpage?
If updating your website regularly makes your to-do list, then great! But if not, then here are 5 reasons as to why that needs to change.
Calls to Action
Several dated websites lack effective calls to actions that convert users to customers. When it comes to a website, a call to action is a button or link that you place on your website to drive prospective customers to become leads by completing an action on your landing page. Besides having an effective call to action on every landing page, you need to make sure that they are clearly highlighted and are interesting enough to persuade your visitor to complete the desired action.
To Stay Competitive
The modern consumer is an impatient one. If you aren’t one of the top Google searches, then you likely aren’t gaining new traffic. The more often you post on and edit your website, the higher up in Google’s search results you will appear. You should also remember that it’s not just the product that’s being compared between you and your competitors, but also your online presence. Consumers are going to choose the brand that they feel best presents themselves, has the most modern website, and who they feel they most identify with the company’s mission.
Content
Expanding on the previous point, the first impression of your website is obviously the overall layout, but a reader is visiting your website because they are looking for useful information. Redesigning your site can give you the opportunity to re-address how you communicate with your visitors by writing copy that is simple, on target, more effective, and that will engage new visitors in 2 to 4 seconds. A website’s content is the most important thing, as it helps in determining how effective a website is. Unique content is a very important factor in encouraging people to revisit your site and ultimately buy from you.
Responsive Design
Responsive Web Design is a collection of techniques that allow a website to flex and adapt to the size of the screen it’s being viewed on. If you haven’t updated your website in a long time, there is a chance that you are driving mobile users away. Some businesses might even consider changing their website to a mobile first design. Ultimately, your goal should be that a person opening your site on a small smartphone will see the same site as a person opening it on a laptop or desktop monitor.
Collect Data and Feedback
A great piece of data that is unlocked on the digital front is the emails used for lead generation or collecting feedback for improvement. By getting people to type in their email address or answer a quick survey in exchange for a member newsletter, monthly first looks, discounts, or free giveaways is a tried-and-true method to obtain that ever so important customer data. Once you have obtained those emails, you have unlocked another digital marketing technique, email marketing, and have direct access to your existing customer base that you can request feedback from.
Of all the reasons to regularly update your website, these are just a few of the most convincing. There’s also the benefit of having higher returns on investments, better engagements with your clients, it’s cost-effective and is extremely customizable, as well as reducing the likelihood of being hacked. It’s time you pay your company’s page some attention!
By: Miranda Hardesty Hoffpauir
