Websites require nurturing. You can’t throw a site out on the internet and expect it to be effective. A good site needs to be checked on frequently to assess how well it is performing for your business. Fortunately, you don’t have to be a tech wizard to conduct a simple audit.

Here are a few easy steps to verify the effectiveness of your website:

  1. Confirm Analytics — Your first step is to ensure you have clear access to Google analytics so you can check on site traffic data. If you don’t have access for some reason, talk to your developer about making that happen immediately. You need to be able to see how often people are visiting your site, how they’re getting to your site (desktop versus mobile), where they’re going, and how long they’re sticking around. That information helps you to focus your efforts on creating new content that is equally, or even more, effective.
  2. Review Content — Websites need to be fed to remain relevant for Google. If you don’t add new content to generate traffic, Google will ignore your site, which will push you down in the rankings. Go through all the pieces of content on your site — blog posts, case studies, videos, and more — and assess how relevant each piece is for business. Using analytics, you can see which content is attracting greater attention from visitors. You can then use that information to target new content in a similar vein. If you have content that’s not connecting with users, you can archive it or spin it into a new piece that might be more effective.
  3. Survey Layout and Design — You may have fallen head over heels for a design two years ago, but it’s possible the color palette and flow now feel obsolete. You also need to confirm your site is optimized for mobile devices, as traffic numbers continue trending toward greater use on smartphones and tablets. Set aside some time to make a thorough review of your site’s layout and design. Look for areas that, in retrospect, may feel unnatural or haphazard. You may not be able to make major changes to the template, but some minor tweaks can help improve how it speaks to visitors.

Have you audited your website recently? If it has been more than a year, take a few hours to constructively assess what you like and dislike about the site. Need help figuring out what to fix? Contact us today.