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Is your website turning into an old clunker?

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A mechanic called one of his customers after a check bounced. “The check you sent me to pay your bill came back!” he yelled. The customer replied, “Well, so did all my car problems that you fixed!” (Cue rimshot)

Websites are like cars. They start to depreciate in value the second you drive off the lot. Things such as style, wear and tear, and changes in technology can contribute to this. However, it doesn’t change the fact that you still NEED that car. It’s a necessity! Perhaps your repair costs supersede the value of your old car, your vehicle doesn’t fit your current situation, or you want to keep up-to-date with current trends. Whatever the reason, your website goes through a similar life cycle.

After your amazing website was built, it starts to depreciate in value. Technology changes at the speed of light as search engines’ algorithms are constantly being updated, programming languages are being updated with new standards (and old ones deprecated) and content management systems are always coming out with better and faster systems – just to name a few. These updates can cause older sites to break and at times can be costly to repair.

Styles and design trends can also affect your website. Flash animated content of the 90’s is now rendered as a big ‘ol square on fancy “i” devices. Websites that have been developed before the “responsive age” are now pinch and zoom nightmares that kill the user experience. The flat design craze has now replaced the rich textures and shadowing that’s best known as skeuomorphic design. These are things that can also make your website, like a car, look old and dated.

Another cause of website depreciation is your organization’s evolving strategy. Your website was developed for a specific purpose and need which may not suit your current website strategy. To address this, you may need to redevelop your site architecture to accommodate your new content. The last thing you want to do is over complicate content architecture and possibly alienate or discourage a user from easily locating necessary and pertinent content.

Future Force Personnel Services Website Before and After.

Future Force Personnel Services Website – Before and After.

So, how often should you replace or redevelop your site? The real answer is…it depends. Considering how often the above happens, we suggest you evaluate your site every 2-3 years. Consider these questions that may aid in your decision:

  • Is your website traffic down?
  • Is your website converting visitors to customers?
  • How does your site compare to your competitors?
  • Does your website take advantage of new technologies?
  • Is your business changing?

If any of your answers to the above questions is yes, then we have some good news. Haley Marketing offers competitive pricing and a great support team to help maximize your digital strategy. However, if you’re happy with your old website, that’s perfectly fine. There are plenty of old clunkers out there that are beloved classics. They may have horrible gas mileage, but at least they remind you of your youth. Just be aware that if you’re not changing with the times, you could be losing out on hundreds of new candidates and customers every month.

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