Whether it is an IT organization, an eCommerce company, or any other business, the website plays a vital role. And why would it not, as our web presence can be one of our most valuable tools to build credibility, connect with customers, and drive more business.
But still, making a website and keeping it intact for a long time won’t help anyway. Yes, you need to keep it updated with time. And, sometimes you need to redesign it as well. When we say redesign, it not only refers to the makeover of the website but also includes changes in functions that can help make the user experience better.
We agree it is not as simple as it seems but surely can result in massive benefits for your business whenever you redesign it. And at the end of the day, it is all about engagement, and basic functions and design elements contribute towards this goal.
But how necessary is it to redesign the website? Let’s first study that in brief.
Is a Website Redesign Essential?
It is said that in every three years or so, a website redesign should be done. But is it worth the time, stress, and expense and when should you do it? So, all these questions are answered here!
Is your website still a major source for leads and revenue? But what if it isn't, then surely this is the time to take a close, hard look at how it's performing. Yes, as all of your prospects visit your website to decide whether to buy from you and if somehow they aren't satisfied form the website only(we are not talking about services here), then they will quickly leave even without any second thought.
According to a survey, 88% of online consumers are less likely to return to a site after a bad experience. But think differently, if you give them a nice experience instead, then your prospects might be swayed to visit your pricing page and could also start a trial.
And, this is the opportunity for our website to perform significantly better by creating landing pages with Unbounce and bring flexibility on our site.
First Thing to Do
So, to start the process, all you need to do is to gather data on the current user journey and map out everything. Set priorities for your end goals by planning the project. But before all that, keep in mind that the user's needs are the primary focus, so remember that they always match.
Further, do create the prototypes to understand better what the new website needs to match all requirements. User testing is another way (even the best) to check if the created architecture works for what the user is looking.
We all know that only a user defines your failure or success, so this could be a great measure to use data and feedback to create the perfect journey for your user.
The Challenges
As we already mentioned above, it is not that easy to restyle the website but a delicate process. Yes, changing the Information Architecture (IA) could cause inconsistency with well-ranked pages on search engines. So to build the new architecture and improve the ranking for other pages later, you can use them as milestones.
Besides that, there is one more challenge, i.e., consistency between products. Yes, it may benefit your brand, but keeping your branding, copy, and product consistency isn’t as easy as it may seem.
8 Compelling Reasons to Redesign Your Website
So, here we are with some quick reasons why one should consider a redesign their website. Let’s begin:
1. Website is Not Meeting the Expectations
First and foremost! Yes, this reason is the most obvious one for you to think about making changes to your website. Think that you have an excellent looking website and things seem to be going fine, but are you getting desired results? Or are you achieving your target sales, subscriptions, or whatever your goal is with your website? If not, then it’s not working well.
So, now the work begins as you need to analyze what is wrong with the website that it is not working well with your visitors. To check what was wrong, you can start by considering the conversion rate and the ratio of the visitor to lead rate. Also, you need to monitor the behavior of the customers on the website and try to identify the points where they stop and leave.
Further, do monitor that is your website’s landing page attractive enough to encourage visitors to proceed to other pages or not? That is because the landing page plays a vital role as this is where people decide whether they want to move ahead with your website or not.
Also, check whether these pages are properly linked with each other or not. Plus, check, is the call to action placed at an appropriate position on the webpage? Or is the website similar to the identity of your brand? After making a check on all such questions, you will discover what is wrong with the website. And, it will help you correct the issue(s).
2. No Longer Accurately Reflects the Brand
Another most important reason this is. Yes, there is no doubt that if your website is not portraying a strong brand image while representing your company accurately and also fails to capture the essence of your brand, then it is of no use.
That is because only a stronger brand image can take small businesses and entrepreneurs and make them stand out among their larger competitors, leveling the playing field. So, this is the time you need to come up and make changes to your website.
3. Website isn’t Responsive and Losing Mobile Visitors
This is the era of responsive websites. Yes, now it is very important to have a design that can easily fit the screen sizes of any mobile device. So, if somehow you discover in reviewing your analytics that a large chunk of your website visitors is originating from a mobile device, then surely it’s the time for you to switch a responsive design.
Gone is the time when people mostly used to surf on desktop, and similarly, your website visitors may also be using different mobile devices such as an iPad, Tablet, iPhone, Samsung Note, etc.
In all, responsive design provides great user experience and makes it possible for visitors to navigate your website easily across all these unique devices. Moreover, Google is also now telling searchers whether your website is responsive, that means mobile-friendly or not. Also, perform their new mobile-friendly test. It will inevitably affect your credibility, lead generation, click-through rate, and sales.
It also means that you are losing a large portion of your visitors if your website is not mobile-friendly and also experiencing a higher bounce rate than usual. It will directly affect your bottom line because it will cost you valuable leads. So, coming to the point, an effective website redesign will address this issue and help you reduce your bounce rate and increase conversions.
4. If Your Content Strategy Needs Improvement
It can be seen that the content is the key to making sales and conversions nowadays. Plus, content can also help in making a better position in search engine rankings. Hence, every marketer now needs an intelligent content strategy that focuses more on quality and diversity rather than quantity. And, for this, the website plays a significant part as it hosts the content.
So, it is wise to redesign your website to support the new content, especially if you are making major changes to your content strategy because even good quality content won't work if people won't be able to see it. So, the search engines should be able to find the content and index it.
5. Have Outdated Third-Party Tools on the Website
It is a trend that websites are today featuring third-party tools that give us the ability to add new functionality to our sites (most commonly on WordPress sites).
These popular tools comprise scripts to embed social media feeds, eCommerce plugins, and exit-intent popups. We can not deny that all these tools add value to your site, but what happens when over time, they will become outdated for today’s standards and end up doing more harm than good.
Hence, if you have any outdated third-party tools on your website, then start escalating them out and enhance your website.
6. High Bounce Rate with Less Returns
What if the bounce rate is higher and the traffic is low? And what if the conversion rate is almost close to zero? Just imagine, you have spent thousands top dollar on marketing, but now it is not paying off.
Well, if this is the case, redesigning a website is the next thing you need. So, what keeps you waiting? Check your stats now to analyze exactly which area of your website needs improvement, and hop on.
7. Your Website Takes Longer Than 3 Seconds to Load
To check how quickly your website loads, run your website through speed tester tools like tools.pingdom.com or gtmetrix.com. And if any way it's longer than three seconds, then again this is the right time to speed it up.
According to a survey, nearly half of visitors abandon any website that doesn't load within three seconds or less. And another survey found that every additional second to a website's load time resulted in 7 percent fewer conversions. In all, a slow site is nothing but a loss to your company. That implies updating it is a must!
8. Failure to Build Credibility
In the era when every business is trying to beat others with so much competition, everything comes down to credibility. People will only invest in your organization if your websites show some credibility. You are in dire need of some major revamping if somehow your website is failing to do so the same.
A good way to gain credibility is to include testimonials and social proofs of your website. In this way, you will be able to tell which firms are your client. You can also use their logos as part of the design of your website to inform people about it as this inculcates trust in the viewer as well.
Final Thoughts
After learning about all these points, we are sure that even if it means investing a lot of money, do not hesitate to make changes on your website because the outcome is going to be enormous. Improve functionality, update tools, or get a new design from scratch but redesign your website surely. Apart from all, if you want to stay fresh and give clients something new, you can opt for redesigning your website.
Many tools are available out there, which can help you evaluate design, outreach, speed, and also help you redesign your website. There is no harm in regularly checking the performance of your website to make sure that your online presence is strong enough or not.
Before making any decision, keep in mind that your website is a means of communication; building it easier for you and your visitors to communicate with each other is nothing but a profitable matter.
Want to Redesign Your Website? Contact Us Today, And Our Team Will Get Back To You!
