How to update a website: 6 best tips

WebsitesCategory
7 min read
Aman Jha

It's fair to say that websites are now the primary channel via which businesses communicate with their clients. Do not risk losing business by not knowing how to update your website.

Maybe you think that once your website is ready, clients will come flooding in.

And that you won't have to do anything more to keep them coming back.

Just as you wouldn't construct an office and then forget about it, your company can't afford to develop a website and then walk away.

Simply creating a website and leaving it unattended serves no purpose. There are periodic maintenance tasks that every website owner and developer should do.

6 best tips on how to update a website   

A successful website has both useful content and an amazing user experience, ensuring that it goes above and beyond to impress everyone who sees it. Over time, however, text and photos become stale and out of date and people stop coming to it. Here are six tips to keep your website fresh.

1. Revamp your content

There's more to a website than simply page text. You should attempt to include more varied sorts of material such as:

Your website's content is the reason people visit it in the first place. Of course, it's important to have a well-designed website with a smooth user interface, but it won't be enough if the content isn't up to date.

Web developer working on graphics at a computer

One of the best ways to bring more people to a website is to start a blog and maintain it consistently.

Blogs are a great way to connect with your audience and provide valuable information without charging a dime, regardless of what your business offers. People like it when the content you share is both interesting and informative.

Furthermore, blogs are an excellent tool for improving your search rankings by using keyword emphasis.

Related: How to create an animated video

2. Upgrade your hosting 

Even experienced website designers might easily overlook hosting upgrades. When it comes to updating and maintaining a website, one hosting plan does not fit all. This implies that not all websites will function well on the same hosting platform.

In addition, the hosting plan that worked last year, may no longer suit the client this year.

Updating a website's plugins and themes on a regular basis might be challenging, but there are ways to eliminate this chore from your schedule.

One option is to use a web hosting provider that automatically updates WordPress sites as part of their standard service for free.

One other important factor to keep in mind while updating a site is speed.

You can evaluate your web page loading times using Google Page Speed, Internet Explorer's Page test, and so on. If you think your website is responding slowly, take preventative measures by optimizing memory-hogging elements and investing in a solid hosting server that offers reliable uptime.

3. Improve your SEO (search engine optimization)

If you don’t attend to your website frequently, your search engine rankings can drop. In fact, Google may consider your site dead in the search engine ranks if you don't regularly publish new material.

Optimizing your site for search engines can help more people locate it.

To ensure a steady stream of visitors to your site, SEO is a crucial step. You can learn how to use Yoast to optimize a WordPress website in this post.

Related: How to find SEO keywords for an ecommerce site

4. Analyze competitor’s websites

If you're considering an update to your website, checking your competitor’s website will guide you in the right way. It's crucial to set aside some time to see how your competitor’s site is performing and why.

For this, you'll need to:

  • Take a close look at their sites
  • Do some research
  • Make changes to your own website

What to find on your competitor’s website?

Firstly, decide what you want to know before you unleash the floodgates of data. It is important to begin your research with a clear objective in mind.

  • Is boosting your website's visibility your goal?
  • Are you making a better plan for using social media?
  • Do you want to see the similarities and differences between product or service descriptions?

Here's how to get started with analyzing competitors’ websites:

  • Make a list of websites that are competitive with yours (i.e. similar sized business and type of customers).
  • You can also use the traditional methods of searching on Google. Simply check which websites come up when you enter some of your top keywords.
  • Put the URLs of your top competitors’ sites on free competitor research tools to see what you can find out about them. Paid tools like SEMRush can show you how your site compares to other similar websites.

Keeping up with the competitors will provide you with the information you need to adapt your website for even better performance. Look for gaps in their websites that your website can fill.

Are you doing routine checks for dead links on your website?

A website’s credibility might take a hit if links are broken. Take prompt action to rectify any 404 errors or broken links.

Nothing frustrates visitors more than a link that leads nowhere.

404 error message on TikTok
Photo: visuals on Unsplash

It's a good idea to make it a habit to look for and delete any potentially bothersome links that you come across.

Don't forget that broken links can also hurt your website's search engine rankings!

In order to automate the process of finding and fixing broken links, there are link-checking tools available online. WordPress sites often use plugins for link monitoring that send the site owner an email when broken links are discovered.

6. Maintain frequent backups of your site

About 50% of all users who don't do regular backups believe that it’s not necessary. Now, imagine your website getting hit with ransomware and you are left with no data.

Losing all of your hard work is the worst possible scenario.

For this reason, you must regularly back up your website(s). In the absence of this precaution, data loss is possible.

To get rid of manual backups, it is recommended to go for a modern hosting provider that offers automated daily backups as part of their hosting subscription.

If your hosting provider says they will back up your site for you, be sure they are really doing so regularly. If not, you may wish to locate a plugin to assist you in regularly backing up your site.

Editor’s note: Protect your website(s) from hackers and mishaps with GoDaddy’s set and forget backup tool. With GoDaddy, you’ll always have a daily backup to revert to if needed.

Why do website owners neglect to update their websites?

Neglecting regular updates simply means that you are neglecting your online presence.

Closeup of a person’s hand on a computer mouse

Website owners often fail to maintain their websites because they either do not see the need to do so or lack the technical expertise on how to update a website.

The other reason could be their concerns regarding the expense and effort required to maintain a website. Luckily, with our advice, maintaining a website is:

  • Easy
  • Inexpensive
  • Straightforward

No matter how amazing your website is right now, trends change over time, links stop working unexpectedly. Make a note on your calendar to periodically go over your website for out-of-date photos, text, videos and broken links.

Conclusion: How to update a website

A website is an ongoing project. Keeping a website up-to-date and running smoothly takes time and effort, but it's essential for the site's long-term success.

The bright side is that there are approaches to simplifying this massive task.

Having a well-thought-out web plan in place may make website maintenance more manageable. If you follow these six  tips to update your website and consistently use them, you are sure to get ahead of your competitors.

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