Written by Josh Murphy
So, you’ve just invested in a brand new website for your business, with all the bells and whistles, then you’re offered a maintenance plan at an additional monthly cost. Instinctively, you question this – it’s just been built after all, what maintenance could it possibly need already? Well, just the same as your car servicing and maintenance, website maintenance is most definitely a necessity and we’re here to explain why.
Sustaining optimal performance
Just the same as any other piece of technology, websites need to be maintained to function at their best. A well cared for site will deliver speedy loading times and a smooth navigation experience for users. As we know all too well, consumers have evolved to have extremely high expectations for efficiency and convenience. As per this survey carried out by Stastista in 2023, “the statistics show the amount of time mobile internet users are willing to wait for a website on their mobile device to load: 16% of the respondents are willing to wait 3 seconds before leaving the site. Furthermore, only 26% of the respondents are willing to wait more than 5 seconds.”
Not only do visitors to the site expect fast loading times, they are statistically less likely to trust the site enough to purchase from it if there are any breakages or disruptions across the website. More and more businesses are relying heavily on their online presence to communicate to their target audience, it is essentially the ‘shop front’. If your site becomes broken or worse, completely unreachable, what does that tell your client base about your business or organisation? It’s not a good look and it could cost a business dearly in lost potential leads / sales.
Protection against cyber attacks
According to Cyfor Secure, there are over 4,000 cyber-attacks every day. That’s 170 attacks every hour, or nearly three attacks every minute. With that in mind, cyber security is not something that any business or organisation can afford to take lightly. It’s a constant threat in the digital age that we live in and it’s important to protect your own website and data as best you can. Regular maintenance on your website involves keeping software, plugins and security protocols up to date, reducing the risk of vulnerabilities that are targeted in cyber attacks. As a web design agency, we take the security of our clients’ websites very seriously and through regular site maintenance we can safeguard sensitive information and build trust among your users
Keeping up with the latest technology
As technology evolves, so do web standards. Regular site updates help ensure that your website remains compatible with the latest browsers, devices, and operating systems. This is essential for reaching a wider audience and accommodating users with diverse preferences. Also, most websites have plugins to accommodate the specific requirements of the site functionality and, in a similar way to apps, new and updated versions are released often. If the plugin/s on your website are not updated to the latest version then they will not be performing to the highest standard and will, in time, stop performing altogether when the version they are stuck on becomes obsolete.
Search engine optimisation (SEO)
As well as technical SEO, which requires the site to be performing at optimum speeds, search engine algorithms are subject to frequent updates. Regular website maintenance ensures that your website complies with the latest SEO guidelines, improving its visibility in search engine results. For businesses in the UK, where online visibility is paramount, maintaining a strong SEO presence is key to reaching and attracting the target audience. A huge factor in determining where your website ranks on the search results pages is how up to date and efficient it is. If it is outdated, not maintained and with potential breakages then it may well get lost which will have a negative impact on traffic coming to the site.
Protect your investment
A great website does not come cheaply and when you have invested time and money into providing the perfect online platform for your business, the last thing you want is to lose it and have to start again from scratch. Whilst this isn’t a common occurrence, it is a very real risk for a site that is not updated or maintained for a long period of time. Without a maintenance plan in place, some elements and plugins will become so outdated that they break beyond repair and the whole site can become irretrievable.
Keeping it fresh
As well as technical maintenance, we would strongly recommend implementing a regular review and update of your content. Keeping your content fresh and relevant signals to visitors and search engines alike that your business is active and engaged. Consumers value up to date and valuable information and it shows that your organisation has its finger on the pulse. Are the images on your site recent and still relevant? Do you have any recent blogs or news posts? Perhaps you have an events calendar that needs amending and refreshing? Whatever it is, taking the time to make these changes keeps your house in order and your visitors will learn to trust the information on your website as current and true.
In the competitive online market of the UK, where user expectations are high, the importance of regular website maintenance cannot be overstated. As a web design agency dedicated to delivering tailored solutions, we recognise that a well-maintained website is not just a digital asset but a strategic tool for achieving business goals. By prioritising performance, security, adaptability, SEO, and content freshness, businesses can position themselves for success and provide a positive online experience for their audience.
