In the age of the internet, websites are the way to promote your business. If you have a business you wish to expand, then you absolutely need to have a website for that purpose. We know that a website can either make or break your business, so it needs to be well designed that suits the preferences of your audience. You may already have a website running for your enterprise, but the question you should ask yourself is – is it outdated and in the need of an upgrade? Here are 8 ways you can know for sure:
Load Times:
The first thing your customer will judge you website on, are load times. Open your website on a device, if it takes a lot of time to load up, your website needs to be upgraded. The optimal load times for peak conversions these days range from 1.8 to 2.7 seconds across devices and with online user’s expectations also rising, a mere 100-millisecond delay in load time can actually hurt conversion rates by 7 percent!
SEO:
If your website needs to survive in the current market, then SEO is the key. It allows your website to show up more easily in a web search and also helps in Google ranking. If your website is not Search Engine Optimized then it’s a clear indication for an upgrade.
Mobile Optimized:
In addition to SEO, another thing to focus on is mobile optimization. A staggering majority of the internet traffic is generated from mobile platforms. If your website is not mobile friendly then it’s a clear indication that it needs an upgrade. Mobile users typically want information quickly, at their fingertips. More purchases are made on mobile devices than on laptops or desktops. To have a website that is optimized for mobile devices to provide a good mobile experience is imperative for your business to grow.
Security:
Perhaps one of the most important points that you have to look out for is security. Do you have the latest security measures in place on your website? Because there are more and more threats coming up each day. If your security measures are old, then you wont stand a chance against these threats. You will need an upgrade ASAP to shield your website against them.
Ease of Communication:
If your customer needs to get in touch with you, can he or she do that using your website? Most websites have a contact form along with additional contact information. Is it easy for your customer to contact you through the contact form? If the answer is no, you need to upgrade your website. Also make sure that you have your social media accounts linked there as well, so the customer can follow you there.