We sometimes get told that website maintenance & updates are not necessary, our reply is simply a question: If you left your car outside in a field and did not use it at all for 1 year, having had no services or MOT’s would you expect it to be in full working order? If in fact your car had not been vandalised or stolen completely, its most likely that at least the battery would be flat. This simple illustration applies to your website. Without continual updates it won’t be the well lubricated machine it once was and will become more and more vulnerable to brute force hacking. This could then result in security breaches if your site is collecting clients’ data.
Remember, your website represents your business so the last thing you want is for it not to be functioning correctly. Having regular maintenance work on your site will also save money as any issues or bugs will be discovered and fixed before they do too much damage.
During maintenance, your website’s framework should be updated (if there is an update available). With each new update, fixes and security patches are introduced. This means that any bugs or potential weak spots in the security armour are mended, reducing the risk of bots and hackers being able to access and damage your site.
Backup is another element of maintenance, so should anything happen with your site that requires it to be reinstated then you have an up-to-date copy to use. This will save you have huge amount of money and downtime as you shouldn’t ever need to have the site completely re-built.
The performance of a website is key to its success. A poorly functioning site is likely to have repercussions on your business and brand. A well performing site will give customers and potential clients confidence in your business.
Search engines like Google favour sites that are fast and free of errors. Part of maintenance is checking for errors and broken links. When broken links are left for a long period of time, they can become harmful and even start to reduce your ranking position. Regular maintenance gives your site the upper-hand with search engine algorithms.
Without any maintenance, it is likely any functionalities that don’t work will not easily be discovered. A consistently functioning website will reduce bounce rates, as there shouldn’t be downtime or parts not working. Its also more probable for visitors to return to your site if it functions as expected, which in turn can lead to increased sales.
When issues are not fixed, they can build up and result in much bigger problems. With regular maintenance, problems are more likely to be found faster and will save time and money, as larger issues will cost more to sort.
Whilst website maintenance may seem simple, it is always best to leave the technical side of it to professionals, especially if your business relies heavily on your site for sales and attracting new clients. It is also very important to mention that the content on your site should be regularly checked, updated, and added to. Fresh content helps with your SEO and also visitor experience as it ensures your site is always relevant.
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