Is your website making you lose business? According to a recent survey by Blue Fountain Media, if a site is not updated, 81 percent of internet users think less of a company, and 39 percent will think again about buying from a company if their website is not modern, user-friendly and relevant.
You could get ahead of the competition by offering a new, innovative website to your prospective hearing aid patients that accurately reflects your brand. Below are some signs you should consider seriously updating your web site.
1. Your site is not mobile-optimized
Smartphones are here to stay. We are all using our smartphones to spend search for things more than ever before.
Businesses, therefore, need a web site that works well on any computer—hats why we recommend a mobile-optimized website. A responsive website looks great on desktops, laptops, and smartphones as the site’s content automatically changes to fit on both large and small screens.
2. Confusing navigation
Few items are more frustrating than not finding what you need on a website. When it comes to website design, the focus is very much on the user experience. Good website design ensures that the user can get to the details they are searching for within a few clicks.
3. Low conversions & fast bounce rate
If people visit your website but don’t perform the actions you want them to take, that is a real issue. You may have traffic to your website, but if no one is filling in your form or calling you up to book hearing consultations, your website is not fulfilling your marketing goals.
Google Analytics describes the “bounce rate” as the number of visits to the site on a single post. In other words, it’s the percentage of people coming to your website and just viewing the first page on which they land. Visitors who bounce either didn’t find what they were searching for, were not interested in learning more or found your website too sluggish or difficult to use, rather than clicking through to another page.
A fresh redesign will help fix some of these problems and can help inspire readers to stay longer. When the bounce rate on your site is regularly above 70-90 percent, it is fair to assume that a new website should be considered.
4. It does not mirror your current brand.
If your company has undergone rebranding since your current site was created, redesigning your website should be a no brainer. Clear branding can make all the difference in your business’ consumer awareness and can place you at the top of your mind when they need a service that you’re providing. Your site sends a strong message about the identity of your company, and an outdated web design that doesn’t suit your company will hinder rather than help your brand.
5. It doesn’t reflect your current product and service offerings.
No business stays the same. Perhaps in the last few years, yours has changed substantially. New models of hearing aids come out every year, but maybe your website is still presenting older models as cutting-edge technology. Maybe you’re now offering Real Ear measurements, but your website doesn’t reflect this. Your website needs to show precisely what your company is now, not what it was five years ago.
6. Outdated functionality
When your website uses third-party apps to accomplish key functionalities, you need to upgrade that software from time to time. You may use e-commerce software, for example, or social media feeds. When there are newer, improved versions of those scripts and plugins, there is a fair chance that one or more of your rivals will use them, which means that by contrast, your site will look weak. Make sure all the tools on your site work, they don’t slow down site speed, and you’ve got the latest version of each.
7. Outdated security
Apart from its appearance, there are lots of reasons behind the scenes for updating your site. Has it got, for example, a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificate? If your URL, when viewed in a web browser, does not have a small padlock icon in front of it, it is not considered stable. An SSL certificate is a significant factor in how high search engines rate your website.
Creating a website that aligns with your hearing practice’s goals is a key part of your marketing strategy, but it’s not the only one. Contact us to talk about how our SEO, content development, and website design services can help secure more hearing aid patients for your practice.