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Web Management
Teylor Schiefelbein

How Often Should I Update My Website?

At Alter Endeavors, we’re often asked: How often should I update my website? Here are a tips that can help you keep track of how often your website should be updated.

Keeping Your Website Up to Date Is Essential for Functionality and Maintaining Trust

A website can be many things, but above all else it’s the first impression of your brand online to a potential client or customer. That means it’s important to ensure you’re putting your best foot forward at all times. While your website may seem like a static thing, the reality is that information about your business will change, while critical elements your website needs to operate will need updates for security or functionality. 

At Alter Endeavors, we’re often asked: How often should I update my website? Websites don’t come with an expiration date written on a label. However, there are a few best practices to follow that can help you keep track of how often your website should be updated.

How Often Should I Update My Website?

The short answer? Every 2 to 3 years on a larger scale. 

The long answer? There are elements of your website that need to be addressed monthly, quarterly, and annually, as well as every 2-3 years.

This article covers what should be addressed within each timeframe to ensure your website is discoverable, functional, and representative of your brand and its direction.

how often should i update my website

Why Should I Update My Website: Every Month

Updating your website every month allows your audience to stay connected to your brand and gives them a reason to return more frequently. Additionally, updating your website with long-form content like blog posts or case studies allows for more opportunities for your website to gain traffic from a search engine optimization perspective. 

In fact, when it comes to SEO, you should probably be updating your website with new content weekly rather than monthly. There’s no hard-and-fast rule for how often you need to be blogging to drive more traffic in organic search, and more often is generally better. That said, one new piece of content per month is a good rule of thumb for a bare minimum.

Add new content in the form of:

  • Blog posts
  • Case Studies
  • Testimonials
  • New team member bios
  • Additional service pages
  • Additional product listings
  • Timely announcements

Aside from new pages or articles, monthly updates could include what has changed about your business. Updates regarding your business’s operation (such as store hours or holiday closures) should be done as promptly as possible. The same is true for product and pricing info, as the last thing you want potential customers to see is incorrect information on your website. 

Why Should I Update My Website: Quarterly

Your website’s performance should be assessed every 3–6 months, and ideally quarterly. This is when you should dive into the details and make sure everything on your site is running smoothly. This includes assessing loading times, checking links across the site, and evaluating how pages display across desktops, tablets, and mobile phones.

Slow loading times and other technical issues can deter potential customers from engaging with your content or returning to your site in the future. At Alter Endeavors, our Concierge Website Services program is a website management service that guarantees your site is running smoothly, from top to bottom, day in and day out.  

Assess website performance and functionality by:

  • Testing page load times across different web browsers and devices
  • Check Google Search Console for any crawl or redirect errors
  • Testing contact forms across the website
  • Crawling links and checking that necessary redirects are working properly

Why Should I Update My Website: Annually

Auditing your website annually is the ideal time to assess what your website is broadcasting to your audience from a product/service standpoint. Take this time to make sure your products/services that you are promoting are up to date and accurate representations of what you offer. 

For small-to-medium-sized businesses that tend to shift their focus more frequently, often according to audience interests or demands—this is an opportunity to take note of what may need to change on the grander scale. This way, you have a better sense of the new direction when approaching your site’s design and overall build in another year. 

On an annual basis, you should look to:

  • Remove or update any services or products that are no longer relevant
  • Ensure current pages are properly optimized for search engines
  • Make note of what may need to be addressed in the near future

Why Should I Update My Website: Every 2 to 3 years 

Every two to three years, you should assess the layout and design of your site from a 30,000-foot view. While you don’t necessarily need to completely change the layout of the site, modernizing your site with intentional UX/UI touches can be very beneficial. More likely, the content can be further refined to speak to your ideal client or customer, or imagery can be updated to better highlight your team, to move away from any cheesy stock photos, and to sharpen the overall color palette. 

Before completely removing any pages, we suggest seeking an SEO audit and consultation. This will ensure that you don’t lose a page that is actually responsible for a large percentage of traffic, with clarity on how to make updates while maintaining your search engine positioning.

These visual and content updates across your website every few years should be shared with your network to celebrate and show the growth of your organization.

Every 2 to 3 years, you should:

  • Assess your site map and what it prioritizes from a user-flow perspective
  • Audit the design of your website and whether it is consistent with best practices
  • Refine content according to your target market, if anything has changed
  • Updates to imagery and/or colors if branding has been updated

When you think of your website as a living entity that requires continuous care, then the idea of updating your website with such frequency comes as no surprise! We often find that when business owners neglect to view their website in this way, they are unlikely to enjoy its full benefits. 

With the proper process and team in place, your website can be a powerful tool that increases discoverability for your business, educates your clients on the ways your product/service is uniquely better, and converts them on the spot. 

Partner with AE to Maintain and Update Your Website

Interested in learning more? Our team offers several ongoing programs covering all the reasons you may have to update your website. From basic hosting and quarterly updates to continuous website management, we can find the right solution for your business. Contact us to learn more!

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