If you’ve ever had an apartment, home, car, yard, wardrobe, or even a hairstyle that has lost some of its luster over time, you can relate to this realization:
It might be time for a major makeover!
The same thing happens with websites. The challenge is: we don’t always realize this is needed until the situation is way overdue for your attention. And delays can be very costly.
The Integral Role Your Website Plays in Your Brand’s Success
If your company or organization is like most others today, you depend on your website to serve as an integral part of your business model – and to be the primary mouthpiece for your brand. Whether your site is purely informational in nature or allows for on-site sales transactions, your website serves as more than just a digital calling card. It is a microcosm of how your customers and prospects perceive, interact with, and are influenced (or not influenced) by your brand.
That’s an important role. In fact, it’s an essential one if you are to achieve your mission.
So, how do you know when it’s time to redesign your website?
After having built over 150 websites for clients large and small over the past 20 years, our team at Ambient Array has gathered some collective wisdom we think you’ll benefit from when it comes to deciding on the right timing for a website rebuild.
The Difference Between a Website Tune-Up and a Rebuild
First, let’s define our terms. What precisely do we mean here by a website redesign? And how is this different from giving your website a bit of tender loving care (TLC) tune-up? Here are examples of each:
You need a TLC tune-up when your site needs:
- New text and images
- A new section to the primary navigation (i.e., main menu)
- A new layout for the Home page
- A refreshed set of meta tags
- Additional interlinks places as anchor text in order to link out to other pages of your site
- New or refreshed plugins
You need a full redesign when you are:
- Rethinking the color scheme
- Changing the fundamental look-and-feel of the site
- Changing the default structural page layout of most or all pages
- Revamping the primary and secondary navigation structure
- Starting over with a new content management system
- Taking care of some of all of the above at the same time
The 5 Signs You Should Redesign Your Website Now
So back to our original question. How do you know when it’s time to redesign your site?
The simple rule of thumb for when to redesign your website is this:
When your website has stopped doing its job, it’s time for a redesign
Sounds simple, right? But how can you determine objectively if your website is doing its job? Let’s break out some of the most common ways that websites stop doing their job, so that you can decide if this is a good time for you to consider a new website.
Here goes!
1. You are receiving unfavorable user feedback from customers, employees and the public at large
Have you gotten some offhand comments about your website from your own employees that were not so favorable? Or, maybe prospects or customers have mentioned to you that they have had trouble using the site to get the information they need or to buy a product from you. If so, dig a bit deeper. If you can fix some popular pages with some light content tweaks, then a tune-up may suffice. If not, you may need a rebuild.
2. Your site is no longer mobile-friendly
Google Analytics 4 reports can tell you whether your customers are having a favorable time on your site when using their mobile devices. There are also specific, free tools you can run to check mobile friendliness. Given that mobile makes up well over half of all website sessions for most websites, strong mobile performance is essential today for maximum online success.
3. Your website’s conversion rates have been down for a month or more
If you measure soft conversions such as downloads or you measure hard conversions like sales, you’re doing something right. You are armed with valuable metrics. Now, what if you notice a prolonged drop in weekly or monthly conversion performance? If you can rule out the effects of seasonality, drastic changes to the competitive landscape, recent pricing changes on your part, and/or a simple bug on your website that can be fixed easily, then a rebuild may be in your very near future.
4. Some or most pages indicate slow page load speeds
You can check your website’s page load speed for free online. If you are scoring lower than 65 or so for mobile, your site may have some deeper structural issues that only a redesign can fix.
5. You are rebranding your business or changing your business model
Going through a major rebrand or changes to your model? If your branding, positioning, targeting, or other fundamental aspects of your brand or business model are about to experience a major change-up, your website will definitely need to reflect that. A major redesign is likely necessary.
If you have recently seen one or more these 5 signs in your business, get the conversation started today with a professional web designer and see what’s possible today.
Ambient Array’s team have built over 150 websites over the past 20 years. Find out what we can do for your online brand presence!