Websites take some planning, coordinating and effort to set up and maintain. Taking the time to update your WordPress site may seem unnecessary, but this is a small time investment that can really pay off. For a lot of people, the bulk of the work comes during the setup phase. Once your site is up and running, you probably post to the blog from time to time and otherwise, you probably don’t give your site much thought. This can be a mistake. Websites require some level of maintenance to keep everything looking and working as intended.
Types of WordPress Site Updates
When it comes time to update your WordPress site, there are two types of updates. Software and code updates pertain to the function of your site. Content updates deal with the written content and visual elements of your site. Both matter and have a major impact on how users interact with your site and your brand.
Website maintenance doesn’t need to be a chore. Here are some easy tips to update your WordPress site and ensure your site is looking and performing at its best.
1. Update Your WordPress Site Software
Check for WordPress updates and make sure you are running the most recent version to ensure your site looks and functions its best. There are a variety of software updates to your WordPress site to keep an eye out for:
- Core (what WordPress calls software updates)
- Theme
- Plugins
Core, theme, and plugins all work together, so you want to update everything to avoid compatibility issues. When everything is up-to-date, your WordPress site will run smoothly and quickly. Always opting for the latest versions will also fix any earlier issues or bugs and ultimately improve the user experience.
Improve Your Security
WordPress Core updates include security features. Running the latest version reduces the risk of being hacked or experiencing other security problems. Using outdated software makes your site vulnerable. Opting to use the latest versions can reduce your odds of experiencing a security breach
2. Make Sure Everything Works
Review the functionality of your site. If you have an image carousel or a video that is supposed to automatically start, make sure those features are working as intended. You designed your site to look and function a certain way. If your site fails to deliver, your customers are not getting the full experience. A busted site makes your business look sloppy and can create a negative association with your brand.
Keep Links Active
Links help users navigate your site and understand the value you provide. Despite your best efforts, sometimes you end up with broken links on your site. Instead of providing value, a broken link ends up leading your reader to this no man’s land of nothing.
The simple solution is the go through your site and
3. Update the Look
Double-check the photos and visual elements of your site to ensure everything looks current. Your site should be visually interesting. People are drawn to pretty things, so the overall look of your site will encourage people to stick around. You need quality content to back up the visuals (more on that in a bit), but the look of your site matters, too. Routinely swapping out images can also keep the look fresh and new for regular visitors.
Remember Your Branding
You may decide to update your logo and tweak your company’s colors. If this happens these changes need to be carried over on your site. Update your WordPress site to reflect the most recent version of your branding, so it’s up-to-date.
4. Review and Update Content
Take time to look over your content to make sure everything is accurate as part of your routine update to your WordPress site. Double-check the info on your contact page, as well as info in the header and footer. Maybe you changed your phone number or adjusted your hours, so make sure these changes are carried through on your site.
Content Matters
High-quality content is very important to your content marketing strategy. Content needs to inform readers about your brand, products, and services. Taking the time to revise old blog posts can breath new life into your content and help boost your SEO.
Reviewing blog content is a bigger task, so you may want to tackle one post a week or month or however often your schedule allows. Things change, so that blog post you wrote last year about five tips to do something may not be completely accurate anymore. Maybe the technology changed, so one of your tips is now obsolete and your list is only four tips. Or, maybe there’s a new development and that old blog post should really be six tips.
Up Your Grammar Game
You may notice other necessary changes as you review things. Perhaps you have improved as a writer or you now use a grammar check app. There could be typos or errors in your existing content that you didn’t realize were there. Perhaps you have since established your brand voice, and some of your earlier posts do not align with your new tone. Simply making a quick revision can get your old content consistent with your brand.
How to Find Content to Improve
If you’re not sure where to start when updating your WordPress site content, a great way to find areas of your site in need of a do-over is to check your analytics. When you understand how people use your site, or rather, what areas are not being used, you can figure out where to focus your efforts. Zero in on the pages with the least activity and look for ways to improve the content.
5. Update Your Products and Services
Make sure any items or services that are discontinued are removed from your site. Again, this creates a positive user experience. Indicate when items are temporarily unavailable to help manage customer expectations. If items are back ordered you don’t want to remove them from your site, because you’ll lose whatever SEO traction you’ve established. Simply indicating that an item is not currently available enables you to retain your page ranking while also keeping the customer informed.
Update Your WordPress Site Today
Maintaining all of these simple updates to your WordPress site will ultimately help your site perform better. From making sure you are utilizing the most recent software updates, to maintaining the content and the appearance, all of these factors come together to create a cohesive user experience. If one of these areas is lagging or underperforming it can hurt your brand’s image.
However, when your WordPress site is fully functioning it is a content marketing force that will garner clicks and increase engagement with your customers. Maintaining your site is an ongoing process, but this is the sort of thing I can help with by lending a hand. Want to learn more and find out how I can help? Reach out!
