January, a time to plan the forthcoming year. It's time to review existing websites or bring that new project to life. Here are 7 things to do to help spring clean your website and make it fighting fit for 2011.
1. Reviewing website performance and goals
Where is your website headed this year? Reappraise your website and pinpoint where things might be going wrong and areas where improvements can be made.
2. Website bloat
Trimming the fat on a website is always beneficial. Trimming file sizes and reducing the amount of pictures used on a page will allow your user to load the page quicker ~ less chance of going elsewhere whilst waiting. Review your website text and cut the waffle! Your readers want to know quickly what the page is about. Make sure the important information is at the top of the page, you can't guarantee the reader will read all your page. Less photos and smaller photos will make the page load quicker your user will appreciate a quick loading page ~ you can't always guarantee they're on the fastest broadband.
A lean and mean website can get a tiny edge in the google ratings, however sure the relevant information remains don't trim that!
4. Offer optimised content for your users
Your mobile users will grow. 2011 will bring an ever growing army of visitors using mobile devices. The trend will continue the grow. The above measures will help website visitors with a small screen, but perhaps the ultimate would be to develop a mobile website specifically for these mobile user to quickly get to the correct information. Website for restaurants quickly come to mind where this approach could benefit.
5. Email marketing
When was the last time you contacted your website users? A regular newsletter can be a great way of informing your customer base about your product and services they would not otherwise see unless they visited there website. Email marketing can be very easily measured to see who read your email and when, what links they clicked on and which website pages they visited.
6. Offer Expert information
If you're the expert in a particular field, do you client know about this? Keeping a blog, with regular blog posting, not only help your website have a regular update (the search engines will like this) your customer will appreciate have a better insight into what you can offer them and why.
7. Social Media
Love it or hate it, Twitter and Facebook is growing. Engaging your customers using these platforms will help traffic find your site. Create links from your website to social media sites or embed Twitter streams into your web site.
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