How a website audit will help you to improve your Online Performance

When your car starts making a funny sound, you hit up your mechanic. The new ache in your knees? Book an appointment with your doctor. And when your website crashes, your first call is always to your website management team.

But what if you’re not even aware that something is wrong? Just like preventive maintenance and routine check-ups, conducting a website audit helps to identify issues before more serious problems occur. In fact, it’s not only a way to avoid costly disruptions to your digital presence - it’s also an opportunity to improve user experience and overall functioning to ensure that you continue to stay as competitive as possible online.

If you’ve never conducted a website audit - or hired a professional to do it - keep reading to find out how much you stand to gain from it. We’ll show you why every business should be performing regular audits to stay relevant in the digital age.

1. A new website is built every three seconds. That means you have a lot of competition online, and if you’re not aware of technical issues that might be affecting your website’s performance, you won’t stand a chance. An audit allows you to identify broken links, slow loading speed, improper redirects, and compatibility issues that affect user experience and search engine optimization.
2. And speaking of user experience, when was the last time you visited your site for the purposes of evaluating it from a user’s perspective? That’s what an audit enables you to do. It will analyze factors like site navigation, content structure, readability, and even overall design, identifying areas for improvement to enhance user experience. If you’re wondering why this matters, consider how user-friendly websites are able to encourage visitors to stay longer, engage with your content, and potentially convert into customers. The answer is that user experience may actually be all that matters.
3. Before your audience even arrives at your website, how it’s optimized for search engines is crucial. Good search engine optimization drives organic traffic to your site. An audit can assess your SEO elements, including meta tags, headers, and site structure. You’ll be able to improve keyword usage, fix duplicate content issues, implement proper metadata, and ultimately boost your website’s visibility in search engine rankings.
4. Do you routinely update your content? If not, it might be outdated or irrelevant. Website audits evaluate your content for quality and performance, such as by identifying underperforming pages. This allows you to prioritize key areas for new content creation and ensure that what’s on your page is high-quality, engaging material that establishes you as an authority in your industry and attracts organic traffic.
5. Cybersecurity is a growing concern in today’s digital landscape, and a website audit is an effective way to uncover vulnerabilities. Audits look for outdated software, weak passwords, and potential security loopholes that can open you to risk. By identifying these issues promptly, you’ll enhance your website’s security, protect user data, and mitigate the chances of a breach.
6. An audit can also provide insights into your website’s conversion funnel, which includes the path visitors take from landing on your site to completing a desired action. By analyzing user behavior, tracking conversion rates, and identifying barriers or friction points, your website will be optimized to improve conversion rates and hit your business goals.
7. Yes, even websites can go out of style. If you’re not conducting website audits, you won’t be able to stay on top of industry trends, best practices, and technological advancements. Audits benchmark your website against competitors and identify areas where you can improve. This helps you stay competitive in your market, attract more visitors, and - yes, we’ve already said it - provide a better overall user experience.
   

It’s actually pretty simple. You don’t have to do a website audit. But if you care at all about your website performing optimally, offering a great user experience, ranking well in search engines, maintaining security, and supporting your business objectives, then you’d better get on it. It’s the best way to identify areas for improvement and help you make informed decisions about how to enhance your online presence.

The benefits of expertise

Hiring a professional to conduct your website audit offers significant advantages over doing it yourself. Digital marketing agencies that specialize in audits have extensive knowledge and experience in analyzing various aspects of a website.  They’re familiar with industry best practices, current trends, and the latest technologies. Their expertise means that they can perform a comprehensive evaluation that will provide valuable insights tailored to your specific needs.

Another advantage of hiring someone for this task is that you’ll benefit from their objectivity. Conducting this type of evaluation requires a fresh and unbiased perspective so that your website is audited without any preconceived notions or biases. Doing it on your own may mean overlooking issues that are obvious to an expert, and will deprive you of valuable recommendations.

Like most things in life, having expertise in website audits also allows professionals to conduct a more in-depth analysis and provide you with a more comprehensive approach. Their methods lead to accurate and actionable recommendations for improvement that are based on actual data.

You can’t optimize digitally without an audit

If you’re a business owner, we know how busy you are. Maybe you’re thinking you can’t possibly add one more task to your to-do list. But here’s the thing: failing to audit your website regularly means you’re not capturing the audience that can actually drive your success.

By contracting a website auditor like Choice OMG, you’ll benefit from customized recommendations based on your specific website and business goals. This will increase your awareness of areas where you can maximize performance and conversion rates, and efficiently address any unique challenges your website may have.

And your partnership with a website auditor doesn’t need to end there. We often work with companies to provide ongoing support and guidance so they can implement recommended changes, monitor the impact, and benefit from our assistance to optimize their website’s performance. It’s a small investment that can translate into a big success by ensuring that your digital presence remains up-to-date, secure, and aligned with your evolving business needs.

So what are you waiting for? Find out how a website audit can provide you with a specialized evaluation that will enhance your website’s performance, and in turn, your business’ success.