Is a full web design make-over needed?
Sometimes, your website simply needs freshening up. It’s mostly still fit for purpose and you don’t want to change the whole thing, but you still want to make it better. There are plenty of things that you and your web design agency can do without changing the entire site, and it could help to give your site the boost it needs.
Keep content fresh
One obvious way to improve your site is to make sure you keep your content fresh. Update it regularly with new, interesting content; you might not even need the help of your web design agency depending on the content management system you use.
This also has the added bonus that it can help you with your SEO. Adding new content to your site means you can continue to target important keywords as well as keeping your website active, which is something a lot of web users look for.
Update your menus
The menus on your site might also be ripe for improvement and could make a big difference to the usability of your site without requiring you to redo the whole thing. For example, review the menus you currently have to make sure they are still as relevant as they were when they were first put in place.
Have you got any new categories of information or new services that could merit their own category? Now that you’ve had your website for a while, do you think it could be improved by moving some of the information around? Your web design agency will be able to help you implement any changes to your navigation that you want to make.
Update header graphics
Websites are often more visually interesting when there are new things to look at from time to time, and changing your header graphics is really easy to do. You could even use images on a rotating basis to keep them fresh and add new ones from time to time to create more interest or announce new projects your business is working on.
Take a look at companies such as Coca-Cola. Their header tends to change based on the events that are taking place, like the London 2012 Games.
Add new features
It’s often also possible to add new features to your site without having to change very much. For example, if you haven’t yet added a blog onto your site, now could be the time to do it. You could also experiment with features such as user comments, interactive guides, infographics and videos. Your web design agency should be able to tell you how they’ll fit into your site and be able to offer advice on the best course of action when you’re re-incorporating new features.
Websites such as Mashable make use of “Trending Videos” to keep users engaged. These are always changing depending on what is popular at the time.
Incorporate social media feeds
Another new feature it’s really easy to add to your website is a social media feed. Not only can you add Facebook and Twitter buttons to your site but also include a live feed of your updates. It’s a small change, but it reflects the direction the web is going in and means that web users can find all the relevant information in one place.
Add avatars
Another quick fix you could make to your site is to add avatars to posts. So for instance, when someone posts on your blog, their post is accompanied by a thumbnail photo of them. This doesn’t just add extra interest to your site; it can also add to its accountability and make it seem more human.
Improve the footer
The footer of your website might not be the most interesting aspect of all, but making sure it is properly incorporated into the design is another simple change you could make. For example, you could ask your web design agency to make an attractive links bar at the bottom of the page that is in keeping with the design of the site (including links such as contacts, corporate and careers information).
Despite common misconceptions, we are seeing a huge change in footer web design. The footer area is gradually becoming the most prominent section of a website.
Improve images
Finally, it’s generally really quick to update or replace the images on your website with new ones. Not only does it create new visual interest but it also helps to keep your site up with developments in your business (for instance, staff photos or pictures from your projects).
Overall, there are times when a full website redesign is required, and there are times when a few simple tweaks are enough to keep the site fresh and interesting. Luckily, there are plenty of different things you can try to help you achieve the latter.
