6 Essential Steps for Spring Cleaning Your Website

At this time of year, many of us will be considering doing some spring cleaning.

Research suggests that 88% of users are unlikely to return to a website after a bad experience — which could mean a damaging drop in traffic and revenue for those who rely on repeat customers.

So, taking the time to review key website pillars, like user experience (UX) and security, could represent a valuable spring clean that could set you up for a successful year ahead.

Strengthen Security

Website security is extremely important — especially for e-commerce websites that handle sensitive financial information. This is why it's essential to review GDPR and site security protocols regularly in the event of a data breach.

Roughly 4.1 million websites are infested with malware, and 18% of websites are found to contain critical cybersecurity threats. This means that regular security checks and GDPR education are essential for the site maintenance team for every company.

It's important to also regularly check anti-malware plugins, SSL certificates, and site host server firewalls to see how "at risk" your security infrastructure is and where improvements need to be made.

A review of your hosting provider's security protocols is important as well, as hackers can exploit security protocols to access your website. Ninety-seven percent of all security breaches on websites exploit WordPress plugins, so it's essential to judge whether it's time to migrate hosting providers.

Related:Cross-Site Scripting Attacks: How to Protect Your Website

Boost Site Speed and Performance

Site speed and performance is a major factor in retaining page visitors. The average speed for a page is 3.21 seconds, while first-page Google results have an average site speed of 1.65 seconds.

This suggests that quicker loading speeds can lead to more traffic, while slow site speeds are likely to affect UX and push visitors to click off the page out of frustration.

The best way to reduce loading time is by removing intrusive assets like unnecessary video sections or flashy reels that add little to the user experience. Removing these can prioritize load space for the most important site assets and reduce load times.

Check for Broken Links

Over 8 percent of all links break within the first three months, and 44% of all links are gone after seven years.

Broken links can frustrate website users, making them more likely to click off the page. Broken links also hurt SEO performance, leading to a potential search ranking drop.

This is why prioritizing link checks during website spring cleaning is essential.

Update Your Brand

Brand recognition and identity is an essential part of many marketing plan, with 91% of consumers more likely to make repeat purchases after a positive experience with a brand.

Updating your brand is a relatively complex process, with many elements of a website to think about. However, basic design features, including consistent design and matching color schemes, will help foster brand recognition.

This brand recognition and awareness of key characteristics of the site help drive customer loyalty and trust.

Optimize for Mobile

Mobile optimization is one of the most important considerations for a domain owner when cleaning up their website.

Twenty-five percent of internet users expect page speeds from desktop and mobile devices to be equal; however, 73% of users experience slow sites when browsing on mobile devices. By optimizing a site for mobile, you'll be putting it in the top 27% of sites for mobile UI.

Google's mobile-friendly test tool is helpful for determining whether a website is mobile-friendly and what improvements can be made. Basic considerations when optimizing a site for mobile include testing the Core Web Vitals, minimizing touch points, and redesigning pop-ups to be mobile-friendly.

Add New Content

Providing well-researched and informative content is a great way to attract visitors to a website. Informational content on a blog page can also provide unique and expert insight. This blog content can also target specific keywords to improve SEO.

When spring cleaning a website, consider adding new and relevant reviews and testimonials from real customers to add legitimacy to your brand. To highlight authority, add new case studies to give site users a look into work that has already accomplished.

Daniel Pearson is CEO at KnownHost.