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I have bad news and I have good news: the bad news is, at some point in the lifetime of your business, you're going to need a new website.
I know, i know, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I couldn't sugarcoat this.
The good news is, this means your business is growing and sometimes that just comes with growing pains.
But the real question is, how do you know when it's time to say "thank you and goodbye" to your old site? After all, you worked so hard and poured your blood, sweat, tears, and hours of your life into your current site! As much as you should be proud of your first site, it's important to determine if it's still helping you and bringing you new clients OR if it's hindering you from leveling up.
Here are 5 signs to look for to you know when a new website is right for you:
1. You No Longer Offer What Your Site Was Meant For
If you're like most people in the world, you're going to change careers or pivot your business at some point. While it may seem like a good idea to dedicate your current site to that new thing, you already ranked on Google for a specific industry, keywords, and even location. At this point, the amount of work it will take to redo and undo that is going to be way more difficult than if you started from scratch.
The good news is, website are environmentally friendly so if you trash it, it only becomes virtual waste! That's even better than composting!
2. There's So Much to Update That You Already Know You Have to Redo the Whole Thing
Here's the thing, your first website did what it was supposed to do, but digital marketing changes rapidly and by trying to update your old site, your judgement may be clouded by what you did before. Yup, even some of the fonts you used then are no longer okay to use (I'm lookin' at your, Comic Sans).
Do yourself a favor and start from a clean slate. It will be SO much easier to implement new ideas when you have a blank canvas versus trying to adjust what's no longer working.
If you want some inspo before you start your new site or work with a website designer, make a list of some key features you want your new site to have that your old site wasn't able to support. This can be for the navigation menu, the type of content you want on your website, inspo for the branding and design, or how you want your mobile design to function!
3. Your Branding Has Changed
If you branding has changed, this is a big reason you should also invest in a new website. Spoiler alert: your website SHOULD change. I'm not necessarily talking about the colors and fonts, but how modern it is -- have you ever looked at how many times the Starbucks Mermaid has changed?? That's no accident! Keeping your branding fresh is a must!
If you are going from a website that had DIY branding that even you weren't a fan of and now you're having your it professionally branded, ask yourself: does it make sense to use my old website with this new branding? Would the format of my current site match the quality of my new branding or would it bring it down? Unless the answer is that it works with your current site, then save your new branding for a new site. Then, you can launch your new site on socials and use that as a way to bring the first wave of traffic to your new site!
4. Your Current Platform is Working Against You
There are a number of website design platforms available in the world, some of which are super user-friendly, some incredibly complex, and some that were great years ago but have not stayed up-to-date with how functional they could be (and also how easy they are to use).
It is a common myth that you need to know how to code and have incredibly high technology skills in order to have a stunning website. If you're still using a site that makes it insanely hard to make a simple edit as someone who offers a service, then that platform is not for you. (DISCLAIMER: yes, there are absolutely sites and businesses out there that should require high-end website development!)
Yes, sometimes having too many options for things you can do with a site can be stressful, but being limited to what you can do limits how well you can reach your visitors and if simple formatting is getting in the way of that, it is 100% a sign you need to jump ship on whatever you're using right now. Nr Media's website design platform of choice is Wix because not only is it incredibly easy to use but it also allows for total freedom in the design and the ability to optimize the SEO! We always want our clients to feel empowered after we've designed their website so they can maintain it in the future!
5. It's Not Mobile Friendly
Chances are, if you are having a hard time editing it just on the desktop view, the mobile view is going to be a disaster (and we know just how important that mobile view is!). Here's the catch: some sites tell you that they have "mobile friendly themes" -- THIS MEANS NOTHING. Unless you have the ability to tweak and move things around, you're still going to be boxed into the restraints of this theme as the automatic switch to the mobile view is not always accurate.
If your current site and current platform aren't mobile compatible, you could be losing almost half (or more) of your visitors because of the way your mobile site functions ....or doesn't.
While it's a hard pillow to swallow that you need a new website, that's exactly why we are here to make that process as painless as possible. Heck, we'll even make it FUN! Send us a message and let's chat!