You have eight seconds to make a first impression. That’s how long visitors spend, on average, looking at a new website before moving on. Can your website pass the test?
A well-designed and user-friendly website is essential to the success of your business. In fact, Hubspot reports that 50% of consumers believe website design is critical to a company’s overall brand. If your current webpage isn’t living up to standards, it’s time for a redesign.
Not sure if your website needs an update? Here are seven signs that it might be time for a change:
1. Your Website Looks Outdated
If your webpage looks like it was designed in the early 2000s, it’s time for a ‘website redesign.’ A dated website design has no special features or is largely text-based. It looks unprofessional and makes you look like you’re not keeping up with the latest trends.
For reference, the average lifespan for a website is 1.5 to 2.5 years. That means if your website is more than a few years old, you need to incorporate new design trends and technologies to make it look “fresh.”
💡 Fact: 38.5% of web designers report outdated design is a top reason why visitors leave a website. (GoodFirms, 2021)
2. Your Website Is Not Responsive
Did you know that 73.1% of web designers say a non-responsive design is one of the main reasons why users abandon a website? A responsive format and layout adjust to any device, whether it’s a desktop computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone. In other words, your website should look and function perfectly, no matter where it’s being viewed.
💡 Fact: “Not being responsive on all devices” is the biggest factor for a website redesign, according to 53.8% of web designers. (GoodFirms, 2021)
3. Your Website’s Navigation Is Confusing
38% of users visiting a website for the first time look at the layout or navigational links. This makes the navigation bar one of the most important aspects of your website. If it’s confusing or hard to use, visitors will likely become frustrated and leave your site.
Similarly, if your website has too many navigational options, this can also lead to confusion. In fact, Good Firms’ 2021 report says 84.6% of web designers agree that small businesses make the mistake of having a crowded website design, which leads to user frustration.
💡 Fact: 94% of consumers think your website should be simple to explore. (Clutch, 2021)
4. Your Website Has Too Much Text
Humans are visual creatures. We process 90% of information through our eyes and do it 60,000 times faster than we do text, so if your website is loaded with walls of paragraphs, it’s time to change things up.
Top Design Firm’s 2021 study found that visual elements, such as videos, infographics, typography, and animation, are the most effective way to communicate with website visitors. In fact, the same study claims when consumers were asked what visual components they look for on a business’s website, 40% selected images, 39% chose color, and 21% preferred video.
💡 Fact: 39% of web visitors value color more than any other aspect of a website’s design. (Top Design Firms, 2021)
5. Your Website Takes Too Long to Load
Even if your page looks great, if it takes too long to load, visitors will likely leave before they even have a chance to see it. In today’s age of instant gratification, people are used to getting the information they want right away. If your website can’t provide that, they’ll go somewhere that can.
Backlinko’s analysis of 5 million mobile and desktop sites shows the average time it takes for a webpage to fully load is 27.3 seconds on mobile and 10.3 seconds on desktop. While that may not seem like a long time, it is when you consider the average attention span of a person is 8 seconds.
💡 Fact: Conversion rates increased by 10.1% for travel sites and 8.4% for retail sites when loading times were reduced by just one-tenth of a second. (Deloitte, 2019)
6. Your Website Has High Bounce Rate
If people are landing on your website and immediately leaving, it’s a sign that your site isn’t meeting their needs. This could be for various reasons – maybe your content is outdated, your design is confusing, or you’re not providing enough value.
Keep in mind that most website bounce rates range from 26% to 70%. If your bounce rate is higher than average, it’s definitely something you should look into.
💡 Fact: The average bounce rate across all industries is 51% on mobile, 45% on tablet, and 43% on desktop.
7. Your Company Underwent A Rebrand
Brands changing mission statements, target audiences, or even their names aren’t uncommon. That said, a website that doesn’t match these changes makes your business look like it’s out of touch and stuck in the past.
33% of customers love it when a business has a consistent brand, so not having a website that aligns with the rest of your branding is costing you. What’s more, 81% of leads say they need to trust your business before buying from you, so any inconsistency damages your bottom line.
💡 Fact: 77% of consumers support companies that share their beliefs. (HavasGroup, 2019)
Conclusion
Having a website is no longer an option for businesses – it’s a necessity. But simply having a website is not enough. It needs to be well-designed, user-friendly, and informative if you want to achieve your business goals. If your website isn’t up to par, it’s time for a redesign. But if you’re feeling overwhelmed or unsure, reach out to the Digikor Media team. We’d be glad to chat!
Sources:
https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/web-design-stats-for-2020
https://www.bigdropinc.com/blog/9-signs-time-redesign-website/
https://www.goodfirms.co/resources/web-design-research-small-business
https://topdesignfirms.com/web-design/blog/website-redesign-checklist
