As a business owner, you may not have the necessary skills needed to build a website, but spotting and recognizing when you need a new website for your brand is definitely easy and should be part of your concerns. Your brand’s website is mostly the first exposure a new lead has with your brand. Your website is your 24/7 sales person, it’s a reflection of what your brand stands for in every way and is one of the most important marketing tools your business can have, therefore it’s important to acknowledge when a new website is needed for business growth.
Just like the average gadget user who would replace their gadgets every few years, especially when there are signs that the present gadget needs replacing, It is important to constantly monitor to see signs and recognize when you need a new website for your brand.
There will be lots of signs that you’ll see to know that you need a new website for your brand. And this goes beyond just how your website looks, although this can be an obvious clue.but the most important signs are the performance and functionality of your website which affects the overall user experience.
It is very important to know that your website is doing the best job it can in representing and honing your business and brand. And if you are not sure that your website is doing its job and wondering if you need a new website for your brand, well, we have listed some important signs to look out for.
Let’s look at the signs that you need a new website for your brand:
1. Your website looks like it’s from the 90’s
Simply put, your website looks old!
You may want to take a trip around the internet, look at your top competitor’s websites and compare with yours. Does your website look modern and trendy? Is it nice to look at or does it look like it was created in the 90’s? One important thing to note is that your user’s eyes see and convey the first messages to their brains before everything else. How your website looks will determine if your users will take the next steps.
Just like every other aspect of technology, website design models are evolving and you don’t want to be stuck behind.
Okay, so maybe your website is not “that bad,” and doesn’t look “that old” but if it does not meet the standards of current website standards and trends. Then there are high changes that you need a new website for your brand.
if your website looks old, then you definitely need a new website.
2. Your website doesn’t reflect your brand anymore
One of the important reasons brands get a website is for brand reflection. To show a brand’s products and services, brands goals and visions and as your brand grows and evolves over time, your website needs to get updated with your brand growth and messages.
Has your business grown and evolved overtime? Have you added new products and services?New employees? Have you made changes to your visions and goals? If so, you may want to check to confirm that your website still accurately represents your brand. Your website should be a place where your prospects come to confirm the information and details they have been given about your brand and not where they come and get confused.
The first impressions your website visitors have can easily be the difference between gaining them as customers or losing them forever. Ensure that you create an impression of credibility with your visitors and that your web design aligns with your current brand message at all times. You need a new website if your website does reflect your brand anymore.
3. Your website takes a long time to load
One of the biggest issues a website will have is a slow load time. You may need a new website if your website still has long load time. Lots of internet users do not have plenty of patience to wait and to be sincere, slow load time for any site is so 80’s. Most of your prospects are like most of us who have become very used to having fast internet and getting things done with speed. This means they likely won’t hang around and wait for those cool graphics to load or, worse still, interrupt the process when the images finally decide to pop up and likely rearrange the website text.
Slow website load time will definitely contribute to higher website bounce rates. To add, Google prioritizes speed when ranking a website on search engines. This is very significant as research shows that 94% of organic search traffic comes from Google.
A long load time is a sign that you need a new website for your brand as you don’t want your visitors leaving your website even before they get the full website experience.
4. Difficult to navigate
Take a scroll through your website. Are you able to find what you are looking for in two clicks or less? Is the website buttons easy to click, are the menu simple and straightforward or do they seem a little confusing? If you find navigation through your website difficult and messy, so will your prospective visitors and customers and this means need a new website design.
It’s common to see on websites. A dozen menu options and buttons in the navigation bar and a website design architecture with about as many sections as a Rubik’s Cube (and about as hard to figure out, too). Many website owners believe that there is a need to provide as many options as possible for their users, and sometimes tell the designers to do this without weighing it’s effect on the website’s conversion. but doing this often overwhelms your web visitors and creates a negative user experience.
As web design trends keep evolving, so will people’s expectations for user experience and website functionality. Users today want a pleasant, seamless and overall efficient experience. If your web navigation and processes are designed based on last decade’s best practices and trends, then there are chances you will be losing web traffic and ultimately losing potential customers. Which means you need a new website design.
5. Your website is not mobile-friendly
Mobile traffic makes up more than half of global website visits therefore, If your website is not compatible with mobile devices, there are chances that you’re missing out on your potential visitors. Even when you may believe that your website is mobile friendly simply because it is responsive when it is viewed on multiple devices, it is most times not enough.
Mobile devices are fast becoming the primary Internet viewing device for lots of people and with people spending more time on their phones, it is very important that your website is mobile-friendly and can meet the needs of your mobile internet users. According to Google, nearly 75% of users will choose a mobile-friendly site over any other site. Further, 50% of people say they will reduce their interaction with a business if the website is not mobile-friendly.
85% of adults believe that a website should look and feel as good or even beeter on a mobile device as it looks and feels on a desktop.
If your website is not mobile friendly, you probably need a new website because you’re not only giving your user’s a poor on-site experience if they’re visiting on a mobile device, you are also reducing the number of visits to your website and also losing potential customers.
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Take a scroll through your website and through your competitor’s website, what is working? What is not working? What differences do you see, how can you improve? Do you need a new website design?
Asking yourself these questions will help you take steps towards getting your website improved and optimized appropriately.
At Chilling Design, we have a team of skilled professionals who will help you with a complete website audit and thorough redesign.
