As a business, you may think there’s a specific indicator when it comes to a website upgrade. After all, there are many different factors to consider when it’s time to improve their business or fix a problem. But how or when exactly should you start? In this article, you’ll see when is the right time to redesign a website.
The truth is, there isn’t just one right answer to this question. Even though the solution isn’t simple, there are many companies out there capable of determining the answer. Companies like Manwaring Web Solutions and others can help you know if your website needs a new design, the features it should contain, and the solution you can use to accomplish your goals.
Web Redesign: How To Know When It’s Time?
While creating a new website may seem like the only solution, taking this path and leaving your old site in an obsolete state isn’t the only way to go. You always have the option to have it redesigned, and here are some indicators that it may be the right time:
1. Pages Take Too Long To Load: The Right Time To Redesign A Website
A slow website is the most common frustration that a user may have. People want information as quickly as possible. Therefore, if a website takes too long to load, they might leave and go to another website.
To help ease loading time, you may have to redesign your website and focus more on the following:
- Resizing Images That Are Too Big
To ease the load time for a website, reducing image size is important. Big images will take a long time to load, which causes your website to be slow. Be sure to resize any photos that are too big before uploading them. Reducing the size of each image can make a big difference in your website’s loading time.
- Cutting Down On The Number Of CSS And JavaScript Files
Every time a user has to load an additional file, there’s more waiting time before the page is ready to use. Reducing the number of CSS or JavaScript files can improve load time, mainly if they’re being visited repeatedly. So, an indicator that is the right time to redesign a website.
2. Pages Are Difficult To Navigate
Some signs that your site is difficult to navigate include:
- Your Visitors Are Confused Where To Go Or What To Do
If your analytics show that some of your users are exiting out during the page load, it’s probably due to one of two things: they either had trouble understanding where they’re supposed to go or what they’re supposed to do.
- Not Offering Any Good Calls To Action (CTA)
If your site isn’t offering any calls to action, you should redesign your website. Offering a service or product without telling them how they can use it is useless. A new design should include some great calls to action that tell the user how to use your website or product.
To do this, you may want to offer a list of different calls to action. These can include signing up for an e-mail list or buying a product. It may also be an offer of discounts or coupons. Whatever it may be, your call to action should answer the question ‘how?’ to help your customers better understand your website.
- Too Many Drop-Down Menus: The Right Time To Redesign A Website
Drop-down menus are helpful, but only when used sparingly. Many sites have too many of them, or they aren’t being used to their full potential. What’s recommended is to simplify your website’s navigation by using sub-menus for any drop-down menus you have. In this way, you’re also observing hierarchy, a principle of design that makes it easy for users to follow through.
3. Pages Aren’t Responsive To Mobile Devices
With an increasing number of people relying on mobile devices for internet access, it’s never been more important for your website to be responsive. Therefore, if it isn’t responsive to mobile devices, you may want to consider a new design.
So, how do you know if your website isn’t mobile responsive? Check to see if you have any of the following:
- Texts Or Images That Are Too Small To Read On A Mobile Device
If your text is too small for mobile devices, you should redesign your website so that it’s large enough to read on the screen. If there are images, make sure they’re large enough to be seen properly.
Remember that a mobile device is much smaller than a regular computer used to view your website. Therefore, it’s recommended to design with those limitations in mind by ensuring that what people see can be read easily.
- Pages That Are Cut Off Or Too Small
If users are having trouble accessing your website because the screen is cut off or too small on mobile devices, it’s another good indicator that your website isn’t mobile responsive and needs a new design.
You may also try to use a mobile-friendly test tool to check if your website is mobile-responsive. All you need is to enter your website address, and the tool will tell you whether it’s mobile-friendly or not.
4. When You Want To Rebrand: The Right Time To Redesign A Website
Have you ever visited a website with a domain name that doesn’t represent the site’s content? It gives you the wrong impression and can be a big turnoff, right? That’s exactly how your users feel when they visit your website and it doesn’t represent your brand.
Thus, if you’ve made dramatic changes to your content or industry, a domain change may be the first thing that needs to be done. You may also include changing your site’s design along with it. Design elements like your logo, color scheme, and fonts need to be familiar with your new brand. A new design can also show users that you’re a new company and aren’t afraid to take bold steps towards success.
However, before doing this step, remember that rebranding has a lot of pros. These include creating a better first impression, improving trust, and establishing yourself as an industry leader. On the other hand, rebranding also has some cons. These include losing the history of what made your company successful and spending money on something new without getting any return for it.
5. Visitors Have Trouble Understanding The Content Of Your Website
Website content is essential, but if your visitors have trouble understanding the content on your website, it might also be time for a new design. Content is always a priority when redesigning a website because you want your visitors to stay and continue reading. One way to improve this is by starting with the headlines and ensure they’re easy to read. From there, you can enhance the rest of your content, including your headers and line spacing.
6. Users Are Distracted By Ads: The Right Time To Redesign A Website
If your users are out by ads when they’re trying to access the real content you want them to view, then it might be time to remove or redesign these distracting elements. Although having ads is a good thing, if they’re too distracting and annoying to your users, then it’s better to consider removing or replacing them. You can then move on, focusing on optimizing your existing ones.
Also, keep in mind that ads are always secondary to your content. Therefore, it’s crucial to make sure you give them less focus compared to the rest of your website’s content.
7. You Don’t Have Social Media Buttons Or Share Features
8. Your Website Is Riddled With Broken Links
If users click on links on your site and have difficulty reaching their intended destination, it can reflect poorly on your business. Imagine visiting a site and clicking on a link to learn more information, only to find out that it’s an empty page. It can even be worse when it redirects you to a completely different page. Some may leave the site immediately and never come back. This happens when links are out on your website.
Broken links can hurt your reputation and turn users away from your organization. If you have a lot of broken links on your website, it may be a sign that it’s time for a new right time to the website redesign.
9. You Haven’t Made Any Changes To Your Website In The Past Year
The digital world moves fast, and if your website not updates, it’ll show. If your website looks like it did when you first launched it, then chances are its aesthetics are no longer current. Keep in mind that a lot can change in a year, and those changes should reflect on your website.
Also, if your business has become too comfortable with its design and keeps on putting out the same old content, consider stopping. Instead, always be on the lookout for new trends and get ahead of the curve with your website. Remember that search engine crawlers look for new and updated website content to determine whether they’re current and relevant. So, fresh content will help you rank higher in search engine results.
10. When You Want To Offer Additional Services
Sometimes, it’s best to start small when you’re building a brand, but if your website is doing well, there might be an opportunity for you to branch out into offering additional products or services. When this happens, your website may not be ready to handle all of that new information and present it cohesively. It could even hurt the look and feel of your website because it’s not cohesive. A new design can allow you to incorporate all the different types of content that may come from offering additional services without negatively affecting how users experience your site.
Adding new features such as interactive videos, online booking forms, or social media integration can significantly improve user experience and lead generation rates. These changes can result in higher conversion rates and increased traffic numbers for any company looking at this option seriously.
11. Whenever There’s An Opportunity For Improvement
It may seem counterintuitive, but sometimes, the best time to update your website’s design is when nothing’s wrong with it. However, if you feel like there’s always something more that could be with it and you’re not sure where to start, a new design might be just what your business needs.
When you’re redesigning a website, look at the process as an opportunity for improvement rather than a chore. As long as you’re willing to put in the effort and research needed, a new design can lead to better rankings and increased conversions. It may also be an excellent time to update your website if you want it to reflect where your brand has gone recently like if you’ve changed direction or have new team members.
The Right Time To Redesign A Website Final Words
A website should always be a work in progress, and it’s essential to be aware of the latest advancements, trends, and updates that reflect your brand. This article offered some of the most common indications that it may be time for a website redesign for you.
Even if none of these apply to you, it’s not necessarily a bad idea to reassess your website now and then. Also, be sure that the reason for your website redesign is to improve how users interact with your site. If the reason is to change it up without adding anything new, you might as well not bother. Remember, a great website redesign can improve user experience and lead to positive results for your business.
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