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Is a Stale Website Rusting Your Reputation?
The Sprocket Report
This article has been updated on 6/22/2021 with the article entitled “Now Is a Good Time to Update Your Stale Website."
Are you ready for an awesome 2014? We hope so since you’re already a month into it. We know it’s tough keeping your website current when you’re already behind on your To Do list. But don’t leave your online visitors questioning whether you’re reliable or wondering if you’re still in business. Here’s a quick checklist for freshening up a stale website.
Maybe your website just needs a little light dusting to make it shine like new again. Or maybe it’s time to trade it in for a newer model. See which of these apply to your website.
Most websites have a Copyright Date in the footer of the home page. If your site was built fairly recently, the date probably changed automatically on January 1 due to a bit of internal code, but older websites need to have the code changed manually. If your Copyright Date is more than a year off you may be giving a bad impression to visitors.
A quick way to brighten up an older website is to swap out the photos in your banner. Put in something topical or seasonal for a new look without redesigning the whole page. Set yourself a tickler on the calendar for a next time to change things up.
Nothing says “stale” like year-old blog posts. You could delete the page altogether so you don’t look so outdated, but good content will continue to boost your search engine visibility forever so you should keep it and add to it. Once a month is great – and it doesn’t have to be a novel. Three paragraphs is enough. Make yourself a topic calendar so you’re never staring at an empty screen. The company picnic can be two posts all by itself – “Can’t Wait Until the Picnic” and “What a Great Picnic!” You can easily think up 10 more topics.
Websites are being built today to be “responsive,” meaning one website that rearranges itself automatically to look good on a desktop computer, a tablet or a mobile phone. If your site is not responsive, you could build a single landing page for mobile viewers. The technology knows when to show that page and your visitors get easy access to the most important info.
Yes, website design can go out of style. Today’s trends include a clean look, simple navigation, big graphics. You’ve seen the new look even if you haven’t thought about it. So ask yourself if a contemporary look is important to your brand and see how your current design compares. It might be time for a change.
Sometimes even if you don’t WANT to change, you have to do it anyway. As technology evolves, older functions are no longer supported and when something on your site breaks, it’s hard to find someone to fix it. Obsolescence happens to your phone, to your computer software and to your website as well. Unfortunately, we have no tips for refreshing once you reach that point. But you’ll be amazed at what’s new!
When you’re in the trenches sometimes the website is overlooked, but remember it’s working for you 24/7 and it could use a little TLC once in a while. Give your site a quick perusal and if you need some help sprucing it up, contact us right away. We’re always happy to help!
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Kate Gingold
I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.
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I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.
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