You’ve already put in the work to build a great website to attract new clients and establish yourself as an expert in your field. But your website is like a plant—it’s a living thing! It needs regular TLC to thrive. Without enough attention, it can start to look pretty sad and neglected. And just like a plant, a website can grow and evolve, so it needs to be tweaked every once in a while. Read on to find out how to take your existing website from good to great.
Audit your current content
A website overhaul is the right time to review your existing content and see how it can be streamlined. Look at each page on your website and decide if it has a clear purpose. Is all of the content on your website helpful, organized, and relevant to your main message?
If you notice that some pieces of content don’t fit in with the overall message of your website, don’t be afraid to remove them. Eliminating unnecessary pages can go a long way in making your website feel less cluttered—and as of fall 2022, it may even help your content rank higher on Google search results.
Also, taking stock of your website’s current performance will help you determine its strengths and weaknesses. By examining the performance of each page, you’ll get a good sense of what type of content is working and what could be improved. Find out:
- What pages are getting the most traffic?
- What pages are getting little to no traffic?
- What pages have longer average reading times than others?
Search engine optimization (SEO) is one of the major keys to driving traffic toward your website.
Keep it cohesive
A cohesive website feels seamless and is easy to navigate. These factors play a significant role in user experience and the overall feel of your website, so it’s worth taking some time to evaluate if you can make any improvements in this area.
Use a style guide
The same writing style and tone should be used for each piece of content published. To establish your style and tone, creating writing guidelines might be necessary. Guidelines can include general guidance and specific rules, like preferences on numbered vs. bulleted lists, for example. These guidelines will act as a guide for each piece of content published on your website.
Use templates for similar pages
When overhauling content, try to select formats and templates for specific web pages to ensure everything follows the same structure. Suppose your website has multiple pages on different medical treatments. In that case, it’s a good idea to make a template with headings, image placements, and FAQ sections that you can use for all treatment webpages.
Bring in the experts
Taking your site to the next level might require a team of skilled professionals—this can include a writer, an editor, a web designer, and other specialists who are skilled at optimizing websites. Hiring a writer can help you decide on your style and tone and figure out how to successfully implement them into your website.
Search engine optimization (SEO) is one of the major keys to driving traffic toward your website. You can hire an SEO expert to go over your website with a fine-tooth comb and find places where things like interlinks and specific wording can be used to enhance your SEO. Your writer can work alongside your SEO expert to incorporate keywords into your content without making it sound like a robot wrote it.
Is all of the content on your website helpful, organized, and relevant to your main message?
Let’s get granular
Once you feel happy with your overall content, it’s time to take a closer look at the tiny details of your website. For example, little things like having too many drop-down menus or distracting pop-ups can make the difference between a seamless website experience and a disjointed one.
To help you with the fine-tuning stage, ask yourself:
- Should the photos on my website be changed or updated? Do they match the material they are posted with?
- Do I have a call-to-action at the end of each website page?
- Is my critical content easily accessible?
- Is my website both mobile and desktop-friendly?
- What is the customer experience like on my website? Is it easy to navigate?
- Does the visual aesthetic of my website match my brand and the message I’m trying to convey?
Paying attention to detail can help your website stand out from the competition. If you find additional things that need to be changed on your website after going through the above list of questions, that’s okay. Your team of writers, editors, and SEO experts can help you fine-tune your website to ensure it reaches its full potential.
Once you’ve finished auditing and optimizing your website, it’s time to show it off! A great way to leverage your new and improved website content is to promote it on social media. Check out this article to learn how to use social media to promote your online content.
