Factors to Think About Before You Make Big Changes to Your Website
If it’s done right, a major website update can give your site more focus, boost your online marketing results, and encourage more interaction with your brand. However, you shouldn’t make substantial modifications to your site without first giving it some careful thought. The team from Saba SEO, an industry-leading San Diego SEO agency, suggest you consider these important factors before you actually start making significant adjustments to your website.
Your Reasons for Changing Your Site
People have a natural tendency to get used to how a site is set up if they come back to it on a regular basis. Of course, this doesn’t mean you can’t go ahead with your website update plans. Just know what your reasons are for doing so. Compelling reasons include:
- Addressing common user problems (e.g., slow page load times or navigation difficulties)
- Making your site rank higher on search engines
- Adding mobile-friendly features to your site
- Getting your site more in line with the image you want to project for your business
How URL Changes Can Impact Your Site
URL and structural changes should be kept to a minimum when updating your website, because changing URLs means you’ll lose all the ranking power those original URLs had, not to mention the links from other sites going back to yours. If you have clunky or unorganized URLs you really need to change, use appropriate redirects so you don’t lose SEO power.
The Way You Plan to Make Changes
Back up your existing site before you do anything. This way, if you really don’t like your changes, you can go back to your original site and start over. A similar option is to create a staged version of your site by:
- Transferring a copy of your site to a new folder or server
- Blocking it from search engines
- Password protecting it
Taking these steps will allow you to test your new and improved site before it goes live. Plus, you’ll be able to keep your original site up and running as you do your tinkering. Also, consider using a Web editor tool. These tools have handy features you can use to replicate certain changes throughout your site instead of having to do it manually.
Major changes could result in a dip in traffic as search engines and searchers adjust to your updated site. One way to minimize this issue is to implement your changes in stages. It can also be helpful to use your other online resources (e.g., emails, blogs, and social media) to let your target audience know about your changed website once everything is done.
Changing your website may be exactly what your business needs, but make sure to take these factors into consideration before you make the transformation. If you need expert advice on how to maximize your website for customer engagement, SEO rank, and increased revenue, reach out to the San Diego web design pros at Saba SEO. For more than ten years, we’ve been designing high-quality websites for businesses all over the world. In addition to web development, we also specialize in content creation, search engine optimization, and social media marketing. To create a winning website design for your business, give us a call at 858-277-1717 today.