Originally published 9/17/2019, Updated 1/7/2021
Your website is often the first place a prospect goes to find out more about your organization. It can be your first opportunity to make an impression. If you are not maintaining your website content, you could be missing an opportunity. Even when not much changes from year to year, keeping the copy on your website up-to-date should be a priority.
Why is it important to keep a website updated?
You want the information your prospects find on your website to reflect who your organization is today, not back when the webpage was created. The details matter to prospects and first-time visitors. That first visit to your website can set the tone for their engagement with your organization.
Even minor changes can make a big difference in a first impression.
One of my Montessori school clients is in the happy position of being fully enrolled as the school year begins. Updating their website to reflect this fact can mean the difference between an engaged inquiry and a frustrated prospect.
It was a simple word change, from “Now enrolling for Fall” to “Accepting applications for mid-year enrollment.” Just a few words changed – but that simple change in wording prepares a new family for a wait. Imagine the parent’s reaction if they called, thinking there was space for immediate enrollment, only to be told they would need to wait for an opening.
This small change led to a few other minor, but important, updates to reflect the new reality of full enrollment and waitlists. Each small tweak was aimed at preparing a first-time website visitor for the way the conversation would go when they inquired.
How often should you refresh your website?
If it has been a while since you’ve looked at what you are saying to first-time visitors, it might be time to review what your website is communicating.
Is the copy still completely accurate? Is your copy helping you to manage expectations? Have there been changes in your organization or business practices that mean your website copy needs to be updated?
Even if everything is still the same, time passes. Sometimes just the passage of time alters the impression a webpage makes.
What to look for…
Here are some things to check on your website:
- Do you have past events described as “coming up”? Do they need to be removed from the website, or simply reworded to place the event in the past tense? Is ‘this year’s annual campaign’ really this year – or was that last year’s fundraising campaign?
- If you offer online classes, have you taken down registration pages for classes that have already happened?
- Are your statistics still accurate? Do you have last year’s numbers describing your organization?
- Have you updated the dates for annual events? Are your dates correct?
- Is your About us page still accurate? Do you have a staff page or ‘key employees’ page that needs a review? If you have bios on your website, do they need to be refreshed?
Spending a little time making sure your website content is accurate and up-to-date will help your website make a good first impression on your prospects and visitors.
If you’d like some fresh eyes on your website content, reach out – I am happy to help evaluate the impression your website is making on first-time visitors.