Why you need to modernise your website.
1. Visual call
When people visit your site, it is seen as a reflection of your organization. If your site looks professional and is loaded with useful information, readers will see you as an authority and an expert. Similarly, if the site looks poorly designed and poorly structured and / or outdated, they will make the same assumptions about your business. The website must highlight your product and / or service and the layout must be harmonious and consistent.
Has your blog, events and similar content got dates on it? It makes sense to remove or update any out of date content that may be polluting your website. As websites grow and grow, it becomes more and more important. An obvious example of this is the use of flash.
2. Reactivity and mobility
South Africa is now smartphone driven. Cellphone owners spend an average of 3 hours 30 minutes on our smartphones every day which is 40 % of the daily average internet usage.
If you consider this fact with the Google ‘Mobile First Index’ update on April 21, ignoring the mobile market is a very risky business. It is now considered common practice to make a website mobile (responsive design).
Responsive Web Design is a set of techniques that allows a website to adapt to the size of the screen on which it is viewed. Someone who opens your site on a small smartphone could be shown the same site as the person who opens it on his laptop etc. For many companies, it may even be wise to design your "mobile first" website.
3. Technique and coding
Is your browser compatible? Is your source code valid (HTML and CSS)? Does your site meet the basic standards of the Web? Is the technique and / or programming language (version) obsolete?
An important factor that you should consider is the increase in ease of use in web design. Each year, web standards change dramatically and web building techniques are increasingly advanced to comply with the latest standards. If your site was developed several years ago, it probably has a lot of useless HTML code, and can slow down the loading speed of your website - which can in turn impact your ranking in search results Google.
The integration of modern techniques such as CSS coding will allow your web pages to adapt to all smartphones.
4. Lower ongoing costs
Mobile usage isn’t going anywhere, and as the Internet of Things begins to play a more significant role in our lives, we’ll see even more devices and screens in different shapes and sizes.
As time goes on, it’s much more cost effective to have a responsive website that looks great on any device than it is to manage and deploy multiple versions of your website.
In 2019 there’s never been a better time to make sure your site looks as good on the desktop as it does on smart phone and home devices.
5. Effective use of calls to action
Many obsolete websites lack effective calls to actions that convert users into customers. A call to action (CTA) is a button or link that you place on your website to encourage potential customers to become prospects by completing an action on your homepage. Is your USP and your call to action clearly highlighted on each homepage? As important as they are, are they interesting enough to convince your visitor to complete the desired action?
6. Measurement of effectiveness
You will be able to measure the effectiveness of your website. An old website may not have the tools to help you measure the effectiveness of your online presence. Examples include thermal mapping, conversion tracking, and user registrations. Today, there is an assortment of online tools you can invest in to help you measure what's working and what's not working on your website down to the last detail. However, to use them you will need a modern website.
7. Content
The first impression of your website would obviously be the overall layout, but a reader will visit your website because he is looking for useful information. A redesign of the site can also give you the opportunity to review the way you communicate with all your visitors and write a simple, targeted and more effective content - remember that in the modern world "go faster and faster "You only have 2 to 4 seconds to attract new visitors.
The content of a website should be considered the most important thing because it helps to determine the effectiveness of a website. Unique and fresh content on a website is a very important factor in encouraging people to revisit your website more often.
8. Responsive websites are easier for you to manage
Responsive designed websites are actually easier websites to manage. That’s because:
• Changes are quicker to accomplish
• Content is readable “scales” on all devices saving you time
• You don’t need to manage multiple sites (mobile and desktop versions)
• Your website is up-to-date with current trends
9. Referencing and updating the website
Just like a website your digital marketing and SEO might need to refresh. If you do not update your website, it is safe to fall into the search engine rankings. Search engines consider that websites with the most recent content are the most relevant to users. Your content may be gold, but if it's the same content as 5 years ago, then search engine crawlers might think it's not as relevant anymore.
The redesign also gives you the opportunity to rethink your keyword targeting and the overall conversion rate of your website. The way people search and the way they search has changed dramatically in recent years, even more so with the explosion of smartphone devices now in use.
10. Responsive design stands out
In our era of social media and how quickly new ideas spread. Responsive design has quickly become a visible mark of a successful, trustworthy and on-trend website.
By changing to responsive website design now, you’re giving your website the best chance to stand out from the crowd and make a great first impression.
Conclusion
In summary, the above information highlights the most important and common signs to watch out for when you want to know if your site is getting old and out of date. Although there may be other signals that your website is in need of an update.
Get a responsive website in 2019
If you want advice on your current website, do not hesitate to contact your local experts at Jasper Consultants.
