A few wool industry companies have recently launched a new website such as American Wool, British Wool, Federation of Australian Wool Organisations, Fuhrmann, Segard Masurel, Südwolle Group, The Schneider Group.

This made me think of my own website and if it was time to update it as well? The reasons why an update can be necessary are plentiful and can vary for each website owner. To help you decide if it is time for a new website in your business I put together this list below.

Your website just simply feels and looks outdated

Website design trends come and go and your website does not have to follow each and every one. However, your website design should also not look too outdated as that immediately implies that your business is also not up to date. If your website looks outdated it is time for some modernising.

Your website is not mobile friendly

Nowadays the majority of website visitors are surfing the web on their mobile phones or tablets. In order for these type of visitors to have a positive experience, your website needs to be responsive. A responsive website means it adapts itself to the screen of the user’s device. In addition, Google ranks websites better which load quickly on mobile devices. If your website loads longer than 2 seconds, is super tiny to look at on a smartphone and is hard to read or click on, then it is time to make your website responsive.

Including videos and large images is not possible

The times of website pages filled with loads and loads of text with a couple of tiny and small images crammed into the text are long gone. Often we can transmit our message much better through a video or images. If it is almost impossible to integrate videos through YouTube on your website or display images as you need to, it is time for your website to get more visual.

The system built for your website is no longer updated

At the time you may have had a website design agency build your website from scratch. Chances are that your website is now no longer technically supported or updated because technology has developed into a different direction. This exposes you to security risks and could also mean that some website browsers no longer display your website correctly. Make sure you run your website on a system that is secure to prevent your website from getting hacked.

The structure of your website is not flexible enough

You have a new project and you would like to reflect it on your website but you don’t know where to fit it into the current menu structure of your site? Your menu structure does not allow you to add content where you would like to as this was not foreseen during the setup of the site? This should not need to be the case. Your website should give you the flexibility to reflect your business and not the other way around.

You cannot make any changes yourself

Often we just need to update one spelling mistake or have to update a photo. If these small changes can only be done by your agency it will cost you time and money (and sometimes nerves) to get the changes done. New websites come with a proper and easy to use content management system that allows you to make small changes yourself.

Your website is difficult to navigate

If your website visitors and potential customers have trouble finding the information they are looking for they will quickly leave. Is your menu structure not really helping to find the right information? Does it need too many clicks to get to the information searched for? Is it difficult to find your contact details on the site? In all of these scenarios, you are leaving money on the table. Get a new website that is user-friendly and not a maze.

Your website is not ranking well on google

If potential customers of yours are typing your company name into google and you don’t rank on the first page of Google, it is almost impossible for your customers to find you. Modern websites have integrated tools built in that will help you rank better on google.

Website takes too long to load

Time is money and website visitors are impatient. If your website takes more than 2 seconds to load, your potential new client has already clicked back to google to find the next company offering what he is looking for. Modern websites load quickly because the content has been optimised in such a way that it provides the user with a seamless experience.

Your website is static and not content driven

In the early website days, websites were the digital version of a corporate brochure. You put content on a page and that was it, you never touched it again. Websites were very static. Nowadays websites should always reflect what is going on in your business which means content is regularly updated through new articles, the latest images from an event, new products etc.

No integration of Social Media

If you are active on social media but don’t have your website connected to your social media accounts you are missing out on opportunities. If you don’t have any social media accounts you are losing out even more. In both cases, you need to review your online strategy and get smart about how you tell your message online. Your new website needs to support your social media activities and vice versa.

Your website still uses flash

Flash animations used to be a big thing in the medieval ages of the internet. More importantly, flash animations don’t work on any mobile device, so the majority of users don’t see your animation anyways. Update your website and lose the flash.

Your website does not reflect who your company is

You have spent a lot of efforts on restructuring or rebranding your company but this is not yet reflected on your website? Your company is your business card, your corporate brochure and should also be your best employee working hard 24/7. Make sure your website reflects all of who you are today.

Website is about you and not your customer

In the past websites used to be similar to corporate image brochures, talking about you, the company and how great you are. Nowadays, websites are more about the customer and less about you. Websites focus on helping the customer solve their problems. Instead of writing on the first page what a great company you are and what services you offer, write about the problems your customers have and how you help them solve it.

There is no way to offer newsletter sign ups or free downloads

The money is in the list! If you are not capturing emails on your website you are leaving money on the table. Any websites goal is either to sell more or to reach more people. In this case, your aim should be to also capture your visitors’ email addresses as you otherwise have no way of following up with them. Your website needs to have the possibility of a newsletter sign up form or a free download, that visitors can receive in return for their email address.

Your website does not provide a Cookies policy consent

In many European countries, websites are required to have their website visitors consent to the cookies policy. Make sure your website meets all legal requirements in your country or region to avoid any legal actions against you.

Your website does not easily connect with Google Analytics

Google offers amazing statistics about your website visitors through their free service called Google Analytics. The tool offers insights about the number of visitors looking at your website, countries your visitors come from, which devices they use, how they found your site etc. Older websites may not always be connected to Google Analytics which would mean you are missing out on important insights about your potential customers.

It has been more than 3 years or more since your last website update

A good rule of thumb is to review and update your website every 2 to 3 years. Technology as well as your business change constantly. Make sure your new website is supporting your business in every possible way.

You spent a lot of money on your last website but don’t really like it

If thinking of your last website development is painful you are not alone. It hurts to think how much money and resources you invested and in the end, you were not really happy with the outcome. This is a tough one. Even though you spent a lot of money the website is not helping you make more. Once you have a well working new website that really reflects who you are, then your website will be earning you money. So give yourself a nudge and venture into the development of a new website, it will be worth it.

I hope this gave you a good overview why you should consider investing in a new website or updating your existing one. Did I miss a reason? Please let me know in the comments below. If there is anything I can help you with for your new website, I will be happy to help.