It’s that time of year again! The diary’s filling up, the Christmas orders are coming in, and your website is probably the last thing on your mind.
But this is actually one of the busiest times of year for people searching online, so it’s well worth giving your website a quick once over before the festive rush (and before the new year brings a fresh wave of people looking for exactly what you do).
Here are seven quick things to check.
- Your Christmas and New Year opening hours
This is the big one. If you’re closing early, shutting for a week or opening extra days, make sure it’s on your website and your Google Business Profile. There’s nothing more frustrating for a customer than turning up to a locked door (and they’ll remember it).
- Your prices
Are you putting your prices up in January? Now’s the time to get your website ready, so it’s all done and dusted before the new year. And if your website still shows prices from two years ago, it might be time for a little tidy up anyway.
- The year in your footer
Scroll right to the bottom of your website. Does it say © 2023? It’s a tiny thing, but an old date can make a website look forgotten about, and that can make people wonder whether you’re still trading.
- Your photos
Have you had a shop refit, a new van, new products or new team members since your website was built? Fresh photos make a huge difference, and real photos of you and your work always beat stock images.
- Your reviews
If you’ve had some lovely reviews this year, show them off! Adding recent testimonials to your website is one of the easiest ways to build trust with new customers.
- Your contact details
Check your phone number, email address and contact form all actually work. You’d be amazed how often a contact form quietly stops sending emails and nobody notices for months.
- Your services
Have you added anything new this year, or stopped offering something? Make sure your website reflects what you actually do now, so you’re not getting enquiries for things you no longer offer (or missing out on enquiries for the things you do).
Want me to do it for you?
If you’ve read that list and thought “I really need to do that, but I don’t have the time” (or you’ve logged in, panicked and logged straight back out again), I can help.
I update WordPress (Elementor or Divi), Squarespace and Wix websites, whether I built them or not. Just send me a list of what you’d like changing and I’ll send you a quote. Updates are £55 an hour, and most small changes take much less than that.
Looking after your WordPress website
If your website is built on WordPress, it also needs regular behind-the-scenes care to stay safe and secure. My website maintenance package is £25 a month, and every month I’ll update your plugins, theme and WordPress itself, back up your website, run security scans, check your SSL certificate and broken links, and keep an eye on it in case it goes down. If an update ever breaks something, I’ll fix it for free, and you’ll get a short email each month letting you know it’s all been done.
Not sure where to start?
If you’d like a proper look at your whole website, I’m currently doing £55 website audits, with every penny going to Alzheimer’s Research UK as part of my Cambridge Half Marathon fundraising. You’ll get a one page website review, a one page SEO report and a 20 minute call with me to talk it all through.
Either way, drop me a message or email becka@traxmediaco.com with what you need. No obligation, no pressure.
Wishing you a very merry (and very organised) Christmas!
Becka