10 Minute Monthly Website Checkup

Your website is important.  It's often the first impression customers get of your business.  How often do you look at it with a critical eye, and think about it like visitors do?

All too often, small business owners will go with a "set it and forget it" approach to their website.  Your attention to detail and maintenance of your website reflects on you and your business.  Leaving broken links, outdated info, and other issues unaddressed on your site could give the impression you're not paying attention, which could erode customer trust.

Good news though!  Ten minutes a month can help avoid your business making a poor first impression and keep things running smoothly, without needing a degree in web design.  Here are a few key items to be on the lookout for:

Load Time -

Time is money.  Check how quickly your website loads.  Any more than 4 seconds could cause visitors to leave before your even seeing your sire.  You can use free tools like Google PageSpeed Insights  to test your site speed and see recommendations.  Talk to your website vendor if you spot any red flags.

Test Your Contact Forms

This seems obvious, but you'd be surprised how many times I've come across forms that stopped working and no one noticed.  Go to all contact forms on your site and send a message, make sure it comes through to the right people.  Also, if you have any auto replies set up, make sure they make sense.  A July 4th message in September would read a little oddly.  Your customers not being able to contact you or receiving confusing initial responses are easily avoidable by testing

Verify Your Business Info

Make sure any address, hours of operation, or contact info you have on the site are correct and up to date.  Check your about us, contact, and any directions pages, and the footer of your site.  Click any social links and make sure they lead to the right page.  Verify phone numbers don't lead customers to a dead end.

Look at Your Site from a Mobile Device

Did you know that nearly 60% of all website visits are now done via smart phone?  Take a look at your website, and ask yourself a few questions:  Does it load fast?  Are the buttons large enough to easily tap?  Can I find the menu?

If the answer to any of these questions are "no", talk to your website vendor about a tune up.

Click on Every Menu Link

Make sure all your pages are up to date, and lead to the expected page.  Outdated info or broken links can negatively affect your customers experience...and your credibility.

Like any tool, your website will take care of you if you take care of it.  Taking a few minutes every month makes sure your site presents your company in the best possible light.

Need help with the maintenance?  Finger Lakes Work Place can help audit, secure and optimize your site.  Feel free to reach out to me, aaron@flworkplace.com, or grab a slot on my calendar to start the conversation!

Cheers!



Aaron