There’s an all too common misconception that once your website is live, you’re all set! So there it sits, year after year, with the same content and functionalities. It soon becomes outdated and might operate a bit sluggishly. You might notice that not as many people are contacting you or purchasing through your website. Meanwhile, the competition seems to be excelling in your market. So, what gives?
Your website is your virtual storefront and usually people’s first impression of your business. How it looks and functions can either engage customers or cause frustration that sends them to the competition. Behind the scenes, several factors also affect whether your website even shows up when people search for a specific product or service online.
How do you know whether your website is helping or harming your business? In this post, we discuss why you should invest in a website audit, and how they help boost your website performance and take your marketing to the next level.
What Is A Website Audit?
A website performance audit involves a thorough review of your website’s design, content, functionality, and online performance. But let’s be clear: Auditing your website involves more than casually browsing through pages to see what you might want to update. Effective audits require the expertise of a marketing professional, someone who understands the technical side of online marketing and what it takes to stay competitive in the ever-changing digital landscape.
Five Things Every Website Performance Audit Should Evaluate
When hiring an agency to audit your website, there are several areas they typically review and analyze. At a minimum, an audit should cover these five key areas:
Site Speed
Images, videos, plug-ins, and other content and features can slow your website down. Slow site speed is not only inconvenient for customers but can affect how well your website ranks in search results. Website audits help uncover these and other technical issues like broken links to improve overall website performance and boost conversions.
User Experience (UX) and Functionality Across Devices
People use their phones for everything these days, and you’ve likely come across at least one website that was nearly impossible to navigate on your mobile device. Tiny text, fuzzy images, a confusing website navigation bar, and hard-to-click buttons…all create a poor user experience that frustrates customers. An audit will assess user experience and how well your site works on a desktop vs. mobile device, and provide detailed recommendations for improvement.
Accessibility
Your website should be accessible to all users, including those using screen readers and other tools to view and interact with content and different functionalities. Audits should include analyzing your website’s design, images, and essential functions to improve overall usability and performance.
Search Engine Optimization
Algorithm updates, keyword usage (or over-usage), sitemaps, and several other technical factors affect how well your website will rank for specific search terms. Audits that include a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) health check identify the issues that impact your visibility online and prevent your target customer from finding your content.
Analytics Review
Analytics reporting digs into specific performance metrics that tell the “story” of your website’s online performance. It’s not only about how many people visit your website but also what happens once they get there (i.e., conversions). An audit helps you understand where you are hitting or missing the mark and how well you’re doing compared to your competitors.
Is Your Business Set Up For Online Success?
When was the last time you had someone audit your website? If the answer is “A while ago,” or even worse, “Never,” it’s time to enlist the professionals for help. Our comprehensive website audits give you the tools you need to be successful online. Schedule a consultation with us today to have our team of experts set you on the right path to digital success.
