Timing Is Everything: Especially When Considering a Website Redesign

As the media landscape continues to shift more and more information online, it is becoming increasingly important to effectively harness the power of the internet to leverage some of its more innovative aspects. As more consumers are looking solely to the web for timely and informative content, their standards for design and interactivity are continually becoming more sophisticated. As one of the most vital communication vehicles and faces of your company, your website must meet both your industry’s standards and your audience’s expectations. But as they say, timing is everything. So, how do you know when the time is right to redesign your website? Redesigning too often is impractical, difficult to justify and can be confusing to clients and prospects; while an out-dated site conveys a lazy, indifferent message. This month we offer you a series of questions to help you identify whether a full site redesign is appropriate or if your website simply requires a bit of maintenance.

At Boston Interactive, we have a saying about an older website; it is like your garage. When you first move into your new house, the garage is clean and organized; but as time goes on, it gradually becomes cluttered and no longer serves its original purpose. Sometimes your site only requires a bit of “housekeeping”, but like your garage every few years you need to do a major “spring cleaning”. In order to prevent that website redesign from becoming too overwhelming, you should periodically evaluate your company’s website and how it supports your current business strategy.

When considering your web strategy, it is important to keep in mind the fundamental elements of your business and how they have changed since you launched your website. The following questions help to identify how much your current internet strategy is still effective.

• How does the website align with our organizational goals?
• Who are we targeting in our communications?
• What is the message that our website should convey to its visitors?
• What do we want the site visitors to do? Call, register, donate, etc?
• How has our business sector changed since our site launched?
• Have our competitors changed the playing field on us, or have client expectations simply outpaced our site?

After going back to basics, be sure to confirm that your website works in support of your business goals. Often, the original assumptions “baked into” your website are no longer relevant when there is a fundamental shift in your business strategy. Anticipating and planning for change are just as much a part of your website strategy as they are a major aspect of your business plan.

The following set of questions about your current website will help to identify specific elements of the site that need improvement and whether they can be tweaked with minor additions, or require a bigger investment to optimize functionality.

• Does the website design and message match the culture of the business?
• Does the website design and message speak to site visitors in a language that they understand from both a visual and an informational perspective?
• Is the information relevant, organized, and easy to navigate?
• Is the website getting and keeping its visitors?
• Is the website presenting up-to-date information and original content?

Redesigning your website can be a difficult task if you’ve had it in place for a long time, but it’s a must to move forward and keep up with the dynamic nature of the web. If you find that your website is not in need of a complete redesign, there are a variety of additions that help to create a more interactive user experience such as homepage image updates, RSS feeds, or even a blog. In today’s interconnected marketplace - amidst a culture heavily influenced by first impressions on the web - an organization’s website is one of the most important brand touch points a company has when trying to engage, interact and communicate with its audience. Does your website make the grade?