HOW OFTEN SHOULD I BE UPDATING MY WEBSITE?

A clear, helpful and fully functional website is critical for almost any business these days and with fierce competition all around it is important to put in the effort to get it right. Designing and building a website is one thing, but what should happen after that initial hard work is done?

Preparing the design, content and imagery for a website can be time consuming and it is a huge achievement when it goes live. However, it is important to understand the process doesn’t simply stop once the site is launched.

Adding brand new web content and updating the existing content is essential for the website’s long-term success, and that of your business. Keeping the content fresh will not only benefit your customers but will help with your SEO ranking.

Why Updating Website Content is Important

There are several reasons why you want to add new content to your web pages, with some of the most important listed below.

Helps with SEO

The more that you update your website, the more search engines will visit your website. That results in a potentially higher Google ranking. The content doesn’t have to be text, it can be images, downloads or new web pages. Focus on quality though, rather than quantity and provide valuable, strategic and relevant information.

Adding blog posts is also a great tool for your website as it increases the number of pages you have and allows interaction with users via the comments.

Web Force 5 provides search engine optimisation services to help improve your Google ranking. If you need some guidance in this area, ask our SEO marketing services experts to make sure you are updating your content in a way to get positive results.

Increase Interest with Content Marketing

To keep bringing people back to your website, you need to give them reasons to do so. Sharing intriguing and valuable content through various channels including blogs, podcasts, apps and social media will help to reach your target audience and capture their interest.

New information will show that you are staying modern and relevant to what is currently popular and what your customers are looking for. This will have a positive influence and by ensuring you have the right information along with calls to action, you will help to increase traffic to your site.

Your Visitors Will Appreciate Updates

A fresh, relevant and up to date website shows you are professional and invested, and this rates highly with visitors. We all know how frustrating it can be to find inaccurate information when browsing so it is easy to understand that the chance of potential customers never returning to the site increases with this.

Ensure your team is always accurately represented to build trust and respect with your customers. Make sure your products and services are updated as often as needed, and of course don’t have any broken links.

Monitor your target audience’s needs using website analytics and update your website accordingly. Perhaps you are getting the same query regularly from some of your customers, so add it to your FAQ page. Or maybe they could benefit from an online chat service so consider including one for your company.

Tailor your pages to new and existing customers and give them what they want for a good user experience. If even one of your web pages is outdated or broken, visitors won’t have the confidence that any of the website is accurate and will quickly go and search elsewhere.

Improves Website Security

Don’t forget about security measures when you are updating your website. Prioritise updating your security so you’re not left open to hacking and other security risks.

                                                                                                                                                                    

How Often Should Website Content Be Updated?

While there is no hard and fast rule, you really can’t update your website too often. Regular updates are best, monthly at least, but aim for a couple of times a week, even if it is just to add a new image, link or blog article.

It is wise to use a content management system (CMS) that simplifies content creation and updating so making changes won’t take up too much of your time. Some quick and easy tweaks may be all you need and you’ll want it to be efficient. There are many CMS platforms including Adobe Commerce, Shopify and WordPress. Web Force 5 has an easy content management system, Continuum, that is a highly effective yet simple to use platform packed with features including analytics.

Analytics are essential and allow you insights into a huge range of information about how your website is operating. For example, over a period of time you can monitor the traffic to your web pages and those that are getting limited traffic obviously need an overhaul.

If you make any changes to your branding, relocate premises or other larger changes affect your business, you will need to update the content on your pages on a larger scale.

Don’t risk an out-of-date website that will reflect poorly on your business. Call now to speak to a specialist consultant for a free no obligation chat about how and when to update your site and improve your success.