As a part of the UW-Extension-led “Building Community Capacity through Broadband” program, and their efforts to demonstrate the importance of affordable, high-speed, rural broadband access, WebWise Design & Marketing and Carr Valley Cheese were recently featured in this video.

So, who are you trying to benefit from those changes you just made, or are contemplating making, to your website? What, or who, is driving those website updates? Are they being made because of any of the following?

• You, your boss, relative, or friend,  saw or read about, what they feel, is a cool feature on another website.
• Your  ___________ (fill in the blank) took a class on web design, and the instructor said  __________(fill in the blank).
• Several businesses similar to yours have large photos at the very top of the page, and rank well in Google Search results.
• Several businesses similar to yours have small photos at the very top of the page, and rank well in Google Search results.
• Several businesses similar to yours have no photos at the very top of the page, and rank well in Google Search results.
• Several businesses similar to yours have videos at the very top of the page, and rank well in Google Search results.
• You read on Facebook that you should __________(fill in the blank).
• You read on a blog with SEO tips that you should __________(fill in the blank).
• You saw a Tweet that said you should __________(fill in the blank).
• @@@@@@@ (Celebrity name withheld) had I guy on her TV show talking about having a YouTube video on all your main pages helping in Google rankings.

What often is forgotten is your target audience. Ask yourself, will the changes make your site more attractive and/or more user-friendly for your target audience? Is your website better because of the changes? Do those changes better describe the benefits of your services, or the quality of your products? How will your audience perceive you, your company, or what you offer?

When reviewing our client’s websites and prospective changes, we sometimes have to remind them, they are not the users, nor are we. We are changing their website for their target audience, not us, or the boss, relative, friend, or someone on TV. It is the website visitor we should be considering.

Are you making changes to your website for yourself, or for your target audience? There is only one correct answer.

Nearly every small business doesn’t update their website content  often enough. I know we certainly fall short in that regard, though I do intend for us to change that. Why is updating the content on your website important? Well, your website visitors are important! Repeat visitors deserve to see new content regularly. After all, there has to be a reason for them to be repeat visitors, and I mean other than when they are looking for your customer service or support contact information. You don’t really want them coming to your website only when they need support, do you? 

So, why else should you update your website regularly? Google and other search engines are good reasons. Google and the others are in the business of providing relevant, and fresh, results. If your website is updated frequently with well-written content, your website will get crawled more frequently by Google, Bing and other search engines. If you have written your content well, and it is relevant to what your intended market is searching for, your website has a better chance of achieving higher positions in search engine results. Google LOVES fresh, relevant, well-written content. Your customers and prospects will appreciate the most up-to-date information about your products, services, or company news.

I Know. I know. We are all busy and it takes time to update our websites. Well, we need (I swear I am going to try to practice what I preach) to realize we don’t have to write a  PhD Dissertation regularly to keep Google, et al happy. Most businesses continually improve, enhance, or add products or services. We can talk about how different customers use our products or services. We can talk about what is happening in our store or office, or locations. We can give tips and hints on how to use what we offer better or more efficiently. Be the expert. Get the idea?

Please remember websites are not “build it and they will come.”  It takes some effort to get positive results from your website.

So, how do we do that easily? Well, if you have a blog or “What’s New” area on your website, you already have the tools. If you don’t, ask your web developer if a blog is right for you. If you have a static website that your web developer updates for you, add a ”What’s New” area or page to your website, and then regularly send them updates. Open a free Twitter account, and put a widget (free from Twitter) that shows your latest Tweets on your home or other frequently visited page. If you have a Facebook page, do the same.

Take a look at your current website analytics, and write down the average number of monthly visitors, pages visited. and their time on your website. Start updating at least monthly, or weekly, or daily. After three months take a look at those statistics again. I am sure you will see the difference.

Google will visit your website more often, index your fresh, relevant, well-written content, and your increased number of website visitors will give you more opportunities.