Of course the challenge to many is evaluating a good vs. bad website in terms of its design relationship to SEO. The rule, however, is surprisingly simple. Just look at your Google Analytics (and if that isn’t set up, contact us asap!). The point of Google Analytics is that you receive ongoing, reliable, and real-time data that explains to you the trends on your website.
If you see that your “Bounce Rate” is creeping higher and higher (or is already high), then you definitely might want to consider a website refresh. If your key webpages aren’t attracting sufficient user attention, which Google Analytics also measures (i.e. the average amount of time per user spent on a page), then it might be time to consider a website refresh. If you’re seeing fewer users on a month-to-month or (especially) a year-to-year basis, then it could be your website.
The last and final test to determine if you should get a new website is a comparison to other websites in your industry. See if it passes the “Wow!” test – but not in terms of you looking at your own website and seeing if it makes you “Wow!”; rather, view a competitor’s website and if your immediate reaction is “Wow!”, then combine that factor with your negatively trending data as described in the previous paragraph, and then go with your gut. **Hint: your gut is saying get a new website!
Then contact us, because we’ll roll your website in with an SEO program if you’d like, not only saving you money but also helping you recoup your investment quickly on the backend. After all, what good is a kicka$$ website if no one is going to see it?
