Have you explored your website lately?

So, you have a website? It is done and now forgotten. You invested time, money, and energy in getting it up and going. Now it is out of sight and out of mind. What we soon forget is that it is likely the first impression that we will make on potential clients. It requires attention and maintenance, and not just by your web design company. Have you explored your website lately?

A website is like anything else that is built like a house or pool, and it is no different than anything else that should be maintained such as fresh landscaping or a haircut. All these things require some amount of attention after they are completed to be effective and look their best.

Many projects struggle to find funding for their completion. Once secured, they are completed. Perhaps there is a ceremony and a celebration. The ribbon is cut. And then everyone leaves. The maintenance for the project is not adequately covered in the budget. And that line item is an easy target for cutting as time goes on. It doesn’t take long for the lack of maintenance to show. If it is a house, things begin to fall into disrepair. They don’t work as they should. And appearances always falter. That new landscaping looks great, but if the grass isn’t cut, the beds weeded, and the bushes trimmed, it will not have the same wow factor that it did when it was fresh.

All of this is also true for a website. It needs maintenance to ensure its continued performance.

Search engine optimization is not something that you do once. It is an ongoing and constant process. Regular maintenance helps ensure that people can easily find you whether they are looking for you or someone like you. Routine maintenance also ensures that your data (both seen and behind the scenes) is optimized to land the visits that you want. The information people are looking for and how they are looking are always changing. This type of maintenance is technical but is critically important to a user’s experience and a website’s performance.

Another type of maintenance is more ephemeral. It focuses on the user's tactile experience.

What are they seeing and feeling when they explore your website? Are they easily finding what they want? Is the site easy to navigate? Do all the links work? Is the content current? Does it accurately reflect the services currently offered? Have the pictures been updated, so they aren’t shocked when they schedule their initial consultation?

These different types of maintenance are intrinsically intertwined and should be addressed holistically. But that task shouldn’t fall to any one person or group. The more team members that are exploring your website, the better it will be. The beauty of web design is that it is very flexible, adaptable, and dynamic. Partner with someone who can help ensure its continued optimization, and not just from a technical point of view. However, at the end of the day, no one knows your business like you do. Take a few minutes and explore your website. If you see something that needs to be changed, don’t wait. Address it now.