If it's been a while since you updated your website, these 8 tips will help you get your website into shape for the year ahead.
- RESPONSIVE
The way people consume media has dramatically changed. With our busy lifestyles, more and more people are accessing their information on the go - in the car, on the train and waiting in line for their coffee. A responsive website adjusts to fit the size of the screen the viewer is viewing it on.
- WEBSITE LOAD TIMES
Since April 2010, Google has used site speed (or how quickly a website page loads) as one of the many factors to rank your website higher in their search engine. Visitors will abandon your site if it takes longer than 2 seconds to load. Test your website page speed at https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
- INTEGRATE VIDEO
One of Google's algorithms for ranking websites in search is how long a visitor stays on your website. Consider how you can add value to your visitors by using video and keep them longer on your site - maybe a testimonial, intro about you and your business, what sets you apart from your competitors, demonstrate your product.
- INTEGRATE SOCIAL
Leverage the power of social media. Add social share and follow buttons on your website. Add a Facebook social widget such as the "Like Box" to show your visitor you're a credible source and that you're a legitimate product or brand.
- SIMPLIFY NAVIGATION
Make it easy for visitors to move around your website and find what they're looking for. Keep navigation the same on every page. Identify your key products/services and create navigation pages from these key elements.
- REFRESH BLOG
Add new content to the blog on your website regularly but don't forget to refresh old blog posts to keep the information up-to-date. Perform a content audit. Look at your call to actions, content tags and images. Are they still relevant to your targeted audience? Archive outdated posts.
- UPDATE YOUR META TAGS
Take a fresh look at your Meta Titles and Descriptions for each of the main pages of your website. The Meta Title tells people and search engines what your page is about. The Meta Description, if written well, entices visitors to click through to your website from the search results. Check for duplicates and relevancy.
- CHECK FOR BROKEN LINKS
Often overlooked, broken links are links that take visitors to pages that don't exist anymore (404 error page). They usually happen when you rename your pages or remove old pages that are no longer relevant. You can check for broken links using Google or Bing Analytics if you have it setup.
These are only a few of things to consider when looking to improve your website. If you'd like to chat about your website and how you can give it a makeover,
we'd love to chat.
