Image Source. Licensed under Creative Commons.
Web design has come a long way since the early days of the internet. If you’ve had a company website for a long time, it’s possible that your website has become outdated, which could be affecting your ability to attract new customers. For those that are unsure whether their company website needs a makeover, here are five tell-tale signs.
It’s all text, no images
Early websites were all walls of text with a few small images interspersed. They looked a lot like leaflets. Nowadays, websites tend to prioritise space for eye-catching images with text being short and concise. As a result, modern websites look more like billboards. Consider the text-image ratio on your website and whether you need to edit your content. Bear in mind that there may be sections of your site which can still be mostly text – for instance, if you’ve got a blog section, this should ideally be text-heavy.
It uses too many colours and fonts
A lot of early websites used psychedelic mishmashes of colours and obscure fonts. Websites have since toned down a lot, often sticking to a handful of colours and a couple fonts. Company websites in particular have got a lot more minimal in order to present a sense of professionalism. Consider whether you need to tone down the colours and fonts on your website.
It’s stuffed with keywords
Keyword stuffing was once a tactic used to help boost search engine rankings. However, this strategy no longer works – excessive keyword usage can actually have a negative effect on your search engine rankings nowadays. You’re much better off getting help from an SEO company when trying to use keywords on your site. The top SEO firms are able to do this in a natural way. On top of improving your search engines rankings, this natural approach to keyword usage will also make the text on your website easier to read.
It uses generic stock photography
Some stock photos have become overused and they can often make a company site seem unprofessional or uninteresting. Try to avoid using these generic stock photos and look for images that are a little more unique. It could be worth paying for original images to use on your site. There are many sites where you can buy unique images for professional use.
It’s not mobile-friendly
Most web users are now searching the internet on their phones. If your website isn’t mobile-friendly, you could be losing out on a lot of potential customers. Whilst most sites are compatible with mobile phones, many of these sites can have formatting issues when displayed on a tiny screen. It’s possible that text may be too small to read or call to action buttons may be too small to tap. Creating a separate mobile version of your site can ensure that your website displays properly when viewed on all devices.
