How often should you update the content and design of your web site ?
Is it OK once having setup your site to leave it as it is, particularly if the nature of your business and its products/services does not change ?
Think of your web site as a branch office or showroom. How often would you update a display ? By contrast, what is your impression of a shop window display that hasn’t been changed in ages and is faded and even dirty ?
Certain things can give the vintage of your web site away and may even detract from its credibility. For example: I came across a web site very recently promoting a paid subscription Newsletter. There was an ‘offer’: if you subscribe before 31 January 1999 you will receive a 25% discount !
This is one of the unforgivable sins on the Internet. There is a big danger in putting anything on your web site that will date pages, be it the information or actual dates if you are not prepared to regularly maintain the site. The issue then becomes: how do you manage this ?
It depends on the type of web site you have. If your site is essentially a ‘brochure site’, you probably are not expecting people to regularly re-visit your site each week. They will visit your site only when searching for your type of product/service, in response to and advertisement that directs readers to your web site, or some other contact with your business. However, there will be the need to update pages as details of your products/services, prices and information about your business change.
For example, with a brochure site periodic updating only is required .
However, if your business deals with constantly changing information you may need to utilise a data base based site that allows for easier updating of information compared with ordinary (known as static) web pages. To what extent this is necessary will depend on the size of your site.
Either way, and technical issues aside, it comes down to a management issue. In the one-person business your are the Web Site Manager (or Webmaster, if you want its pretentious title) and in a larger business someone will need to take on this responsibility. You will need to periodically review your site to ensure what revisions need to be made. The frequency of this will depend on your business – but don’t leave it for 3-1/4 years like in the Newsletter example above.
Monitoring your web site’s statistics can also give you clues as to which pages may need revamping, if few people are accessing them. These statistics will show you a pattern of usage for your site and this will reveal what is interesting to your visitors and what is not so interesting. After consideration of these statistics, you may have the clues as to what changes are needed to your site. You don’t need access to these statistics services directly from your ISP. They can be sourced from third party services, such as Bravenet and WebSTAT – to name just two.
Here is a checklist of some of the issues you need to plan (preferably in writing as part of your Business Plan):
- How often your sites content need updating
- Who will do this
- Time allocation for these revisions
- Will this be done by you, or an outsider
- If by you, what software and can you use it effectively
- Monitoring competitors web sites
- Regularly checking your site’s statistics
- When a major revision is required (eg updating the design)
- Checking any external links, to ensure they are still valid
Link
CityDesk
Content Management Software that enables you to update your web site yourself.
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David Berghouse author of BizNet: a Workbook coveringthe Internet and eCommerce for home based and small businesses … putting the puzzle together
http://www.microbiz.com.au
david.berghouse@microbiz.com.au