Marketing: Scaring off customers with your Frankensite?

If your company website is a poorly designed, lumbering, disorganized mess, you likely have a Frankensite on your hands. Often, these sites lack clear messaging, are outdated and don’t prioritize the mobile-first experience today’s consumers have come expect.

According to a WebFX study, 94% of first impressions are related to your website’s design. But looks aren’t everything — a Top Design Firms survey shows 42% of users will abandon a site with poor functionality, and 61% say they’ll go to another site if they don’t find what they’re looking for in about five seconds. Yikes.

Even if you’re working with a Frankensite, updating to today’s standards doesn’t have to be a monster undertaking. Here are some recommendations to consider:

HAVE AN EASY TO DIGEST MOBILE PLATFORM

With more than 55% of all web traffic coming from people using mobile devices, it’s clear they’re getting their information on the go. An easy way to produce a mobile-friendly site is by using a responsive design that automatically adapts to the screen size of the device. And when a site is being viewed on a smaller screen, it’s essential to strike a balance between clean and modern, with an intuitive user experience.

AVOID BAND-AID FIXES

Frankensites often start with a generic template and can include various plug-ins and other non-custom pieces as time goes on. Although functional, this quick fix approach will never deliver a cohesive look or seamless functionality. Whether you want to capture leads or generate sales, keep your end goal in mind so you can customize your site to deliver information in the most efficient way possible.

OPTIMIZE EVERYTHING

Staying current with today’s standards and SEO best practices only helps boost your web performance. Make sure to optimize everything — from site speed, to clean code, to properly optimized images, to keywords — to ensure a fully-functional, uncluttered site that gives users the experience they’re looking for.

MONITOR USER ENGAGEMENT

As the end of the year approaches and you’re forecasting budgets for the coming year, check in on the state of your website. If it’s a fright to manage, runs slow as Frankenstein and isn’t generating leads, it could be time to breathe life into a new (website) creation.