Websites need constant care, just like your car for example.
If we want our car to run smoothly, we have to make sure that every couple of thousand miles we change the oil, rotate the tires, make sure it has enough coolant fluid and more. If we do it regularly, the costs of maintaining our vehicle are minimal. However, if we neglect our vehicle then we may need to buy new tires or even replace the whole engine if it overheats.
I have just finished a project that reminded me of a neglected vehicle. In my case, it was a neglected website.
At first, I tried my best to improve the existing website without doing any major costly updates.
The website is built in Wordpress which is typically not my first choice in web design. I worked with what I had and I would say I was able to improve a few things. But that wasn't enough. Not only was I not happy with the website design, but I also started to notice that it is not mobile responsive. Mobile usability is increasing and Google is well aware of it. Mobile responsiveness is a huge factor when Google bots index your pages.
Since my client's long-term goal is improving the SEO of the website, I had to take a step back and suggest a major repair. Patching it up wouldn't work in the future and it was only a matter of time when the website would fail.
After a well thought out plan, we decided to replace the engine. I was aware of the risk involved, which is losing most of the functionality of the website since the old modules and plugins might not be compatible with a four year newer version of the interface.
Luckily the transition turned out to be quite smooth. We managed to keep all the content but some of the websites extensions like contact form, alerts and log in and registration had to be redone with a more up-to-date software. In addition to website design and interface update, the website is now running on the most recent server version.
The whole process took about as long as it would take me to build an advanced website from scratch. Meaning that major repairs are less cost-effective than regular updates. Wouldn't you rather change the oil than replace the whole engine?
With Halloween around the corner, Colibri Web Design in Eagle, CO will provide a free website analysis in the month of October. Find out what updates are necessary on your website and avoid major repairs. Shoot us an email and use the code "Trick or Treat" to get the free analysis.
