5 Reasons to Break Up With Your Website

Relationships are hard. Being in a relationship where you give more than you get is even harder. Nobody likes to be the one to break things off but sometimes, you just have to. If you’re feeling frustrated, under-appreciated, and like you’re the only one doing the work…it’s probably time to end things…with your website.

If you’ve been feeling some tension in your relationship with your website, it might be time to have the talk and move on.

Maybe you just need some help fixing the relationship (we can offer that) or maybe you’ll need a whole new website (we can help with that, too).

If you’re not sure, we’ve got 5 reasons it might be time to break up with your website. 

1. It’s Slow 

Slow to commit is bad. Slow to load is even worse. The average user will wait 2-3 seconds for a page to load before giving up and leaving. You should keep a close eye on your Page Load Time- the time between when a user clicks on a link and the time it takes the content to load. There are a lot of things that can slow your site down and many of them can be fixed…but sometimes, things just can’t be fixed and it’s better to move on. 

Faster websites rank higher in search engines and convert more customers. So if you’re website is slow, it might be time to make a quick getaway.

2. It’s Old 

We are not condoning ending relationships because of age…unless it’s with your website. An old website is going to present a number of problems that aren’t just annoying but can impact your bottom line.

An old website can also send the wrong signals. 

• It won’t be mobile-friendly: Older websites aren’t going to be mobile-friendly and if your site doesn’t respond on mobile, you’re going to lose customers and Google is going to penalize you
• It could be a security risk: The older the site the more likely they are to be vulnerable to the constantly evolving security threats on the internet. Outdated websites don’t have the most up-to-date security protections leaving you and your customers vulnerable to threats. 
• It won’t rank well in Google: If your site is old, outdated, or stagnant, it’s not going to meet Google’s standards and they will know it. So, having a new site isn’t enough. It needs to be consistently updated with new content. 

3. It Doesn’t Perform 

Ouch. We hate to say it, but performance is important. Here are some signs your website isn’t performing:

• High Bounce Rate: If there’s a high bounce rate (this means the number of visitors who leave your page after viewing one page) this might mean there’s something wrong on t
• 404’s: Are there broken pages or links? That’s not good. 
• Poor connection time: If it takes a long time for your user’s browser to connect to your server, it could be a sign something is wrong
• Error Rate: Error rate measures the percentage of problem requests

You don’t just need a website. You need a website that performs.

4. It’s Not Helping You Achieve Your Goals

Relationships should be beneficial…they should help you be better. If your website isn’t helping your business perform better or grow, it’s time to say goodbye. 

At a minimum, your website should:

• Attract customers
• Convert visitors to leads
• Make you look good
• Help you build an audience 
• Be a valuable source of information
• Represent your brand
• Be able to collect customer information

While your goals will differ based on your business, your website should be at the center of helping you achieve those goals. If it’s not…well, you should probably talk. 

5. It Doesn’t Keep You Safe

We touched on this, but it’s worth repeating. If your website is old or outdated, it’s not going to protect you or your customers. And why would you want to be in a relationship where you feel unsafe? 

While it’s nearly impossible to always use the most updated technologies (since new technologies are always being released) extremely outdated tools can open you up to security risks. The older your website, the more applications and plug-ins you need to rely on in order to keep it running properly. The more of these you have running, the more vulnerable you are. 

Unfamiliar with any of the words we’ve thrown around in this post? We’ve got you covered with our SUPER Glossary of Internet Terms.

We know you don’t want to think about ending the relationship with your website and starting a new one. It might even be possible to save the relationship by making improvements to your existing site. Either way, you might need some extra help figuring out the right course of action.

We’re no relationship experts, but we are website experts. If you’re unhappy with your website, give us a call and we can help you decide if it’s worth saving or if it’s time to cut and run.