Do I need a new website? 7 reasons to redesign your website
Are you starting a new business or worried that your old website won’t ‘fit the bill’? Do you have a website, but are embarrassed to tell people about it? Are you getting a lower rate of return on your digital marketing than you did in previous years? Here are some of the top reasons why a website needs to be redesigned.
To be clear, not all website problems are solved by building new. A carefully chosen web design firm can identify problems on your current site that can be fixed or advise you if it is better to invest in a new site.
Here are some of the top reasons why a website needs to be redesigned.
1. The website looks bad on a phone
According to Similarweb, 52.75% of website traffic by Canadians in March 2024 came from mobile phones. This is followed by desktops at 43.4% and tablets at 3.85%. If the user experience of those mobile users isn’t perfect, it’s time to take action. A best practice in website building is to design for ‘mobile first’ because it helps deliver a better user experience. It also rewards shorter, more succinct content, which will be appreciated by all users, regardless of which device they are using.
2. The main message/goal of your website needs to change
If your business has evolved, or you’ve taken on an entirely different marketing approach, it will likely be easier to meet those new goals with a new website than trying to work within the confines of the old site. Developing a Digital Strategy will help to identify the role of the site as the hub of your digital marketing, since all digital initiatives should point to it.
3. Users can’t find what they need
Sometimes a search tool can be all a website needs to help users find what they’re looking for. But a new website gives you the opportunity to identify stakeholders, create Customer Stories, and use the design phase of the website development to trace the User Journey, so that visitors to the new site can find what they need.
4. The design of the site is outdated or no longer cohesive
If it’s been more than 5 years since your website was built, chances are good that your site is not looking relevant in the eyes of today’s visitors. Those same visitors will also feel a little less comfortable browsing different areas of the site that don’t stay within the brand. If you have different people managing your website content over the course of a few years, your website can easily develop multiple personalities, and this detracts from the user experience. Developing a new website brings focus to the content as well as the design.
5. You’re not getting traffic from Google
It’s no secret that Google is making organic search results irrelevant. (Just search for literally anything and see how far you have to scroll to see the first organic search result!) This doesn’t mean that Search Engine Optimization is dead; rather it means that you need to be more intentional, and perhaps pickier, about what search terms you go after, and make sure the website and digital strategy is relentless in the pursuit of those terms.
6. It’s difficult to update the content
Since Google rewards websites that regularly add new content, you should consider a new website if your existing site stands in the way of easily updating content. Care should be taken though to build the site in a way that contributors stay within Brand. Too much freedom can be detrimental and lead to multiple personalities that drive visitors away.
7. The conversion rate is poor
If lots of people are clicking on your ads and coming to your site, but not buying/engaging, it could be that the website is getting in the way of the sale. If the site doesn’t look professional or is buggy, visitors may not trust whatever it is you are selling, be it a product or a service. Rather, they will likely leave after having visited only a single page. In Google Analytics terms, this used to be a bounce rate, but now the focus is on engagement. The higher the rate of engagement, the better. A new website, made by a professional web design company, that loads quickly and is easy to navigate, will have a better engagement rate and increase conversions.
Do any of these scenarios resonate with you? Sometimes a website can be remediated with a little investment, and can serve you well for a few more years. Eventually, though, all websites need to be rebuilt, and if you find yourself saying ‘That’s our website!’ to three or more of the statements above, you would be wise to start looking for a web design firm to build you a new website.
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