How often should you update your website?

August 03, 2020

Having a successful website requires time, work, and dedication. Just like you put effort into maintaining your business, your website should also have the same level of detail. After all, a website is an extension of your organization. Oftentimes it’s the first impression potential customers see. As such, maintaining an active website lets users know you are a trustworthy place of business. Staying up to date with information is key in letting your customers know what you’re all about. Whether it’s uploading new images, writing new updates, or doing regular maintenance, having a steady flow of content shows that your business is active and healthy. In this article we write the basics on how often you need to update your website to meet your needs.

Bare Minimum

Ideally, a website is updated at least once a month. Each business may have different needs, however, a once a month update is enough to let visitors see the most current happenings on your site. No, this does not mean a complete overhaul of your page, nor redesign. Rather, this should be updating images to reflect change or adding new information to reflect changes such as new services, policy, or hour changes. Otherwise, your site will seem indistinguishable from an abandoned site to repeat visitors. Give your online users a reason to come back. Think of it like cleaning up your shop or office: leave it unchanged for too long and people will notice. A monthly update can also help businesses stay relevant at any given time. For example, consider updating according to season, such as wedding season, holidays, company anniversaries, etc.

Active

An active site will have changes done on a bi-weekly basis. This is ideal for industries that rely on new information. Updates include newsletters or new products. Active websites are usually a reflection of the amount or type of activity a business has. For example, those in art inspired business or restaurants can show what is in available. Similarly, a change in policy or feature would be a welcome addition to an active site. That’s because it’s a change that will not likely be made in the next few days, but flexible enough to adjust to the company’s needs.

Power User

A power user will be updating their webiste on a weekly or daily basis. This is best suited for E-shops or news/entertainment sites. These sites are ideally already relying on their website for day to day operations. Although uncommon for small or micro-business, certain industries lend themselves to frequent updates.

Full disclosure: Top Hat Central offers a website creation and management service. Along with personalized websites, we help maintain existing sites to better reflect your business needs. Top Hat Central specializes in small or micro-business and create an affordable plan to help you stand out from your competition. For more information on our web services check out our services page here.