A recent survey stated that most websites are updated quarterly with the large majority only updated 1-3 times a year. This is a big problem considering that the survey was taken with small businesses; the group that has the most to gain from their website.
Search engines like updated websites - Search engines record how often you update your website. The more you update your website, the more they will rank its web pages and the more people will find you on search engines.
Reach more people - The more you update your website, the more content it will have and the more likely people will find you when they are looking for information.
Your customers will visit it more often - An important part of updating your website is to keep your customers informed. Whether it is news, a sale, an event, a change in policy, etc., all of this is valuable information that your customers want and can use. The more you update your website the more you will connect with your customers. It will also help attract potential customers.
You need to look current - Updating your website frequently will make it, and your business, look lively. Customers like doing business with lively companies. If your website is not current, it looks like your business is outdated, stale and old.
Updating does not have to be hard - I suggest updating your website at least twice a month, if not more often. You can update your website with simple things like announcements, special offers, news etc. Updates don’t have to be big news or events, just information that people can use. I suggest that you devote at least 30 minutes a week to updating your website. Once you are used to it, it will be easier and more productive. You will see the results in a few weeks. In fact, I challenge anyone out there to show me where updating their website consistently did not result in an overall increase in website visitors.
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Robert Hughes is Managing Direct of the Cheltenham based Drupal web development company – Tigerfish Interactive