Web
Website Maintenance and Windup Toys
By Flying Hippo
You know that awesome windup robot you had as a kid that would rigidly move its legs to walk around after you wound it up nice and tight? Its yellow eyes would even light up, and in a monotone robot voice, it would say, “Robots will take over the human race. Death to humans.”
No? Ok, so maybe that’s not normal… Anyway, the only thing scarier than a robot wanting to take over the human race is a website that isn’t properly maintained. Think of your website the same way as you think of that windup toy. If you don’t keep winding him up, he will slow down until he stops working.
Your website takes care and attention after its initial launch. Website maintenance is important. If you don’t keep winding it up with new content, images and updates, your site won’t be running at full capacity. Here are our tips on how to keep your site up-to-date and looking its best.
Content
Without great content, your site will be lacking one of the most important components. Even if your site has key messaging and all of the basic information covered, you need to keep everything on your site up-to-date. Mistakes like listing products that you no longer offer, or dated contact information are things you want to avoid. When you make changes to your business, make sure your website is consistent with them.
As always, it’s important to refresh your website by posting new blog content on a regular basis. Not only is this is one of the founding principals of a good inbound marketing strategy, but it also provides you SEO authority by posting more pages that are optimized to be found on Google. We always suggest attracting new visitors to your site by utilizing blogs. To do this, write your content with education in mind. What do you think your potential clients are searching for on the internet? Meet them in their search results list with a blog post containing the answer to their question and you will garner a ton of new web traffic.
Images
The images you display on your website can really set the tone for the whole look and feel of your brand. Maybe your website was designed some time ago, and you want to post a couple new images that will be on your home page. Be sure that the images you choose are the correct dimensions and resolution so that they don’t dilute your brand or lose your credibility. Blurry images are BAD!
Stay Updated
To keep your website up-to-date, you must check all of the links to make sure they are working properly and routing your visitors to the intended page. If you find broken links, replace them ASAP. Be sure to test all of your embedded social media links every once in awhile too. If you’re looking for a tool to manage broken links, try using Site Improve.
It is also important to keep your website add-ons updated with the latest versions. If you use a tool like a cart function or a WordPress feature, be sure that they are working correctly to get the desired outcome.
When you keep your website wound up with these simple maintenance tips, your site will keep running smoothly. Websites are not a “publish it and forget it” tool for your business, but with a little windup and key turning, you should be running like that robot I talked about earlier. But without the yellow eyes and the plans for world domination.
