Could your website do with a lick of paint? While there are many factors to consider (regarding both design and functionality) here are 4 tell-tale signs that your website needs a redesign.

Not optimised for mobile devices

Research shows four out of five people use their smartphones to research products and services before making a purchase. If your website is not optimised for mobile devices (e.g. if it is difficult to navigate, slow to load, or poorly designed), you could therefore be missing out on a significant volume of potential new business from your mobile audience.

What’s more, Google and the other search engines are now penalising websites considered not to be fully mobile-friendly. That means, if you’re investing in other areas of SEO, you may be fighting a losing battle…

All is not lost however; while in some cases a full redesign will be needed, you may be able to save some money and salvage your existing website by making a few improvements. Check out Google’s official guide to mobile-friendly websites here to see what needs to be done. 

High bounce rate

If you’ve taken the time to set up a Google Analytics (or any of the available alternatives) account for your website, you’ll be able to get an idea of how well it is performing. One of the things to look at is your website’s ‘bounce rate’; the percentage of people who leave a website within a few seconds, or without clicking through to another page.

Most bounce rates fall between 26 and 70 per cent, with the average bounce rate being 45 per cent. A high bounce rate could mean your website is slow loading, causing people to become impatient and look elsewhere, or doesn’t live up to the expectations the visitor had before accessing your site, meaning some work either needs to be done to the design or content on page.

Low conversion rate

By looking at your website’s analytics, you should also be able to see the percentage of users who are converting or taking action in some way – this could be purchasing a product, signing up to your newsletter or deciding to contact you.

Conversion rates vary greatly, depending on your industry and what you hope to achieve. However, if your good conversion rates have declined over time (or if they are significantly lower than the average for your industry), you may need a redesign to freshen things up a bit.

The site looks dated

The Internet is constantly evolving, and unfortunately, that means it doesn’t take long for any website (no matter how on-trend it was at the time it was designed) to start looking dated. Be sure to review your website frequently, and if you’ve been personally involved or invested in the look and feel of your site, ask an unbiased third party to give you an honest assessment.

For more information on redesigning your website, speak to an expert such as MA Design (web design Cheltenham).