Protecting your investment with a Website Performance Review.
Last week we chatted benefits of doing a quarterly website view. I shared my Top 10 Things to Look For When Doing a Website Quarterly Review, and offered some of my best tips and tricks for getting this done. So this week I thought I would take things a little deeper by discussing the benefits of doing a Website Performance Review.
It doesn’t matter how beautiful your website is, if it isn’t performing well, you are reducing your visibility. And if you aren’t visible, your customers aren’t finding you! So let’s take a look at five key areas you want to check to ensure your website is working well for you.
#1 Website security checks and updates
An unprotected website is a security risk to you, your business, and your customers. It opens your website up to vulnerabilities and could aid in the spread of malware and other malicious online activity.
What to do…
- Ensure you have a SSL Secure Website (this is the https domain address)
- Make sure your site is set up to always redirect to an https address
- Perform software updates regularly
If you are unsure where to begin with these steps I recommend reaching out to your hosting company to get started.
#2 Content Review and Changes
As I shared last week, reviewing your content ensures you are always sharing the best up-to-date information with your website visitors. But did you know it also supports your website SEO visibility? It’s true, by taking the time to review and update your website you are showing the world, (and Google) that your website is relevant.
What to do…
- Check out last week blog Website Quarterly Review and follow the steps shared.
# 3 Broken Link Checks
Having broken links not only sends your website visitors to a dead end, it also impacts your SEO if they get out of control. By checking your website regularly for broken links you will be able to address these quickly and easily. One thing to note, having a few broken links is not going to destroy your SEO. Broken links happen often, and without warning, so don’t stress when you find a few.
What to do…
- You can look through your website to test the links found, or use a link checker like Dead Link Checker or Free Broken Link Checker.
#4 SEO Review and Updates
There are two benefits worth mentioning for doing SEO reviews. First, by reviewing and updating our SEO we are showing that our website content is relevant as it has been recently updated. The second is that we are able to implement better key words and phrases simply by using the words and phrases our customers are using when talking about our business, products and services.
What to do…
- Pay close attention the the key words and phrases you hear your customers use
- Keep a list to help you track which ones are most popular
- Update your key pages with these key words and phrases to improve your visibility during online searches
#5 Performance and Usability
How well your website performs is a big factor in how long your website visitors will hang out and learn more about you. If your home page takes forever to load, your visitors will most likely bounce. Usability is the next big factor in determining how long they stick around on your website. If the content is formatted poorly, or doesn’t flow well your website isn’t very usable. If your visitors can’t find what they looking for right away (like how to get started) your website isn’t very usable.
What to do…
View your website like a customer! Check out this blog post for a little help and inspiration A Fresh Look At Your Website Content
- Open it up on the a computer or browser that you rarely use
- Pay close attention to how quickly the pages load and how easy it is to find key details
Your investment in your success
Taking the time to follow these steps is more than just an item on your to-do list. It is an investment in your success, and if you ask me you deserve the very best!
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