June 2024
Updating a website can happen in many ways: through content, CMS, and design. If you haven’t updated your site in quite some time, a quick refresh can make a significant impact on your site’s:
If you’re not regularly updating your site, we’ll explain exactly why it’s important to your website’s safety, usability and function.
A website upgrade or update can do quite a few things:
User experience and SEO are two other reasons to update a site and deserve their own section for clarification
Outdated websites can harm your site’s:
If your site is outdated, it will turn users away, it may be slow and your SEO may suffer. Search engines value sites that are updated regularly.
Not sure how to update websites that you own? Maintenance is often built into your CMS, but you’ll also want to review the CMS docs to learn how to update it properly, edit content and more.
A website upgrade should also include a website content update. You can and should edit content that is no longer accurate and add new forms of content that users may want to see. Create and follow a content strategy with the help of your marketing team.
Depending on your goals and needs, you may want to update your website design. If you haven’t changed your site’s design in a year or more, a design update can help refresh your site’s look and feel.
Whether you’re looking for a fully custom design or want to customize a WordPress template, it’s worth it to bring in professional help. Website update services, like what we offer at BMG Media, save time and ensure that your new site’s design aligns with your vision and goals.
Updating a website may also mean upgrading your CMS. Many businesses upgrade to a better CMS platform due to:
If you find that your CMS is no longer working for you or you want to access more advanced features, it may be time to upgrade to a new platform or higher tier.
Even if you’re satisfied with your current CMS, you will need to make regular updates to patch security holes and ensure everything is working as intended.
Now that you understand how to update your website, the next thing to consider is how often you should update your website.
The frequency of content updates will vary from one site to the next and depend on several factors.
As a general rule of thumb, most businesses should aim to update their content at least once a month to keep things fresh.
Design updates can be made less frequently. Software updates should be made whenever they are available.
As for CMS updates, there’s no need to update your CMS unless you find that your current system is no longer working for you and helping you achieve your goals.
Website updates and maintenance can be put on autopilot, such as automatic updates on WordPress, but that only keeps a CMS updated. You’ll also want to make it a point to review and schedule updates for your site’s:
Reviewing these three elements of your site and updating them as necessary must be part of your normal routine.
Content updates should follow your content plan.
If your site generates a lot of search traffic, updating stale content can help you maintain and increase search rankings. But update frequency depends on the volume of content that you have on your site.
Updating a website can be a big undertaking. Whether you’re refreshing your content, design or software, it’s essential to have a framework in place for monitoring and analyzing the effectiveness of your updates.
Monitoring the effectiveness of your updates will allow you to measure your return on investment (ROI). There are several key metrics to monitor, including:
With each new update, you should have a plan in place to continue monitoring and analyzing the results. If you’re not getting the results you want, further updates may be required.
Like your business, your website should be constantly evolving to stay relevant and agile.
