Why Do You Need A Website Redesign?
When you first launched your website, you probably loved the way it looked and thought it was the perfect shopfront for your business. But over time, you might have fallen out of love with it a little. Maybe it looks a bit dated or lacks some of the website functionality that your competitors have.
It could be time for a website redesign!
Redesigning a website doesn’t necessarily mean changing every single thing about the site – although of course you can do that if you want to. You may still love your logo and colour scheme but just need the layout to look more modern. Or maybe the e-commerce side of your site isn’t running as smoothly as you would like and needs to be updated.
It takes money, resources and time to incorporate all of the great website features and functionality that you might want. So before you redesign your website, you need to be sure that this is a project you are ready to undertake.
Here are some of the most common reasons to redesign your website:
To Bring Your Site Up To Date
Probably one of the most common reasons for a website redesign is to bring an old-fashioned site up to date. We’ve all visited sites that look like they were designed in the early 2000s and it gives a bad impression of the business. Potential clients are more likely to choose a company which has a website that looks modern and is easy to use, because it makes us think that the company will be up to date in other areas.
So if your website looks like it might have been designed at the turn of the century, working with a professional web design team can bring it right up to date.
To Update The Branding
If your business strategy has changed since your website was designed, you may find that your website is no longer aligned with your current strategy. It’s important to ensure that your site represents your company well, particularly if potential clients are likely to find you via your website or visit the site before they contact you.
Sometimes older websites have inconsistent design and layout across different pages, especially when extra sections have been added over time. It’s important to achieve a consistent look and feel throughout your site including navigation menus, button styles and font styles. Even slight design changes can make it more difficult to use your site or even make your visitors worry that they’ve been redirected to a different site.
To Increase Traffic To Your Site
A website redesign won’t automatically increase traffic to your site. But if you’re currently running a slow loading site which isn’t optimised for mobile traffic or search engines, refreshing your site can certainly help matters.
As well as updating the look of the site, you might want to consider moving your site to a modern CMS with advanced content management features. This will allow you to add a blog to your website, which can help your site to rank better on search engines. And then you will need to ensure that your content is optimised with relevant keywords, attractive images and internal links to other posts and pages on your site. These links will help search engines to understand the value of the content on your site and keep visitors on your site for longer.
To Improve Your Conversion Rate
Perhaps you’re already driving plenty of traffic to your website but then they aren’t converting into solid leads. If so, you need to redesign your site around a clear strategy for conversion.
In this instance, you’ll need to ensure that your site clearly signposts who you are and what you do. You also need to make it easy for them to take the next step towards being a customer, with clear steps for getting in touch. Your site should let your visitors know who you are, what you do, and who your target customer is. Make sure that your new website design clearly sets out the main services that you offer and what your value propositions are.
It needs to be easy for them to find the information that they are looking for and how to contact you, in as few clicks as possible. Clean design, clear information and a compelling call to action can help to boost your conversion rate.
To Add New Website Functionality
Design isn’t the only consideration when you decide to redesign a website. You might have a great looking site but want to add ecommerce functionality. Or perhaps you have tried tagging on some great website features like a live chat function but they aren’t quite working properly.
Your website needs to be easy to use as well as looking good. If your potential customers find it hard to use, they may click away and visit one of your competitors instead. Working with a professional web designer to incorporate the website functionality that you need could work out far more cost-effective and support your company’s growth in the long run .
To Optimise For Mobile Traffic
If it’s been several years since your last site redesign, it may have been designed with desktop traffic in mind. This could mean that anyone using their mobile phone to browse your site will find it more difficult to use and that could cause them to leave your site quickly.
In fact, mobile search has become so popular that search engines now prioritise the mobile experience when they are crawling your site. So having a site that isn’t optimised for mobile devices won’t just give your audience a poor user experience, it could be reducing the chance of them finding your site in the first place.
So when you’re choosing a web designer to redesign a website, make sure they know how to revamp a website so that it looks great on mobile.
To Incorporate New Content
Regularly updating your website with fresh content is a great way to attract both visitors and search engines to your website. It helps to establish authority in your chosen area and is a great way to highlight new products and services.
You might want to add a blog to your site so that you can publish articles and company updates, or you might want to display photographs of your work in an online gallery. If you already have a blog, you might be considering adding great website features like video content or a podcast to your site.
It’s important to develop a digital content strategy so that you can be sure that you’re publishing the right content to attract your ideal customers. But it’s also vital to ensure that your great content can be found easily and looks attractive to your site visitors. You may need to consider a website redesign so that visitors and search engines can find your content easily.
Is It Time For A Website Redesign?
Whether you opt for a partial refresh or a full website redesign, the process will take time, money and effort. But the results can help you to boost your site traffic, improve your conversion rate and achieve your business goals.
If you need to redesign a website, Richard is on hand to discuss your plans with you. Together we’ll create a website design that will help you to achieve your goals. For more information, you can contact Aspire Shire through our website, email us on info@aspireshire.com or call 0330 229 0747.