Keep your website running smooth with regular web maintenance

Posted on July 16, 2019July 4, 2024 by Phil Robinson

Website or web maintenance is key to longevity for your website – Just like with a car. If you let your car sit without doing any work on it, eventually it starts to act up. It might start drifting in one direction, take longer to start-up in the morning, or make weird sounds. You wouldn’t want to go years without getting an oil change, rotating the tyres, or changing the fluids.

And you shouldn’t do it for your website either.

Website Design or Website development doesn’t end when the site is launched. After the site is done, you need to keep your site maintained. Web maintenance means regularly check it for issues and errors, such as links to pages that no longer exist. Doing check-ups regularly helps keep it running strong, which can increase your Google rankings and encourage more visitors to come to your site.

Do websites need maintenance?

It’s true, that a website doesn’t have mechanical parts like a car, but that doesn’t mean its structure is immune to degradation either. but there are still constant changes in technology and some website maintenance tips that can keep it running smoothly.

While the physical parts rarely break down (servers or cables can go down) the structure can become obsolete. Think of it like apps on your smartphone; occasionally, you have to update the apps. Some of them need updating every few weeks, whether it’s addressing a bug or some vulnerability or adding new sections.

The same is true for websites, except that they’re updated without visitors having to authorise the changes. It’s all done by the site administrator instead. Changes for platforms like WordPress are rolled out constantly, and it’s important that the administrator stays up to date to keep site data safe. There’s also occasional glitches and hiccups. One example is that some products might disappear from your online store due to a bug and it’s important to be able to fix the problem quickly.

How do I maintain my website?

The best way to stay up-to-date on your website is to be aware of when critical updates happen, the check engine light of the digital world. This could be on your CMS system (WordPress, etc.) any plug-ins your site uses, or integrated software. Any security patches should be installed immediately, as not doing so can put your site or data at risk.

Checking for broken links periodically is helpful too, especially when you link to an external site or have made changes to your site like updating or adding new pages. A broken link pulls visitors out of the experience because the related content they wanted to visit doesn’t exist. And having multiple broken links can cause visitors to lose trust and abandon your site for someone else’s, and also weaken your SEO for Google searches.

Toxic Backlinks can also be harmful and are a little harder to spot. A “backlink” is when another site links to your website. Like it sounds, a toxic backlink is when a bad or harmful site links to your site. This can be a spam site, a site that has malware, or simply a link-building site that offers no value except for linking to other sites. Whereas a normal backlink is helpful and can increase your ranking on search results, a toxic backlink has the opposite effect and harms SEO. Since you can’t go to the site and remove the backlink without administrative access, your only options are to ask the site owner to remove the link, or to use Google’s disavow tool to tell Google you don’t want that link counted.

Regular “tune-ups” help your site stay secured and optimised

Just like a vehicle, a website needs different things checked at different times. But unlike a car, instead of checking things every few months and a few thousand km, we recommend a monthly plan to address and stay on top of all of these potential issues such as some of the examples below

Making sure all of your pages load properly
Having no 404 redirects (page does not exist), especially when the link is to a page on your own site
Checking for broken links
Doing any updates for plugins marked as urgent or important
Checking page load speed to make sure pages load quickly and as expected.
Testing the site on multiple browsers and devices, such as a desktop, tablet, and mobile device.
Making sure that your website backups are working properly.
Making sure all email addresses mentioned are still active
Checking that forms still work as expected.
Confirming that your domain name will be renewed without lapsing.
Changing any references to the previous year on prominent pages such as the home page.

Like your car, it’s important to keep up on web maintenance. And also like your car, if you aren’t comfortable with doing it yourself, there are qualified professionals right here in town who understand Website Design and the importance of building and growing your website for you and who are more than capable of handling it for you. Get in touch with us today to get started.

If Your Website Sucks, It Won’t Convert

Posted on April 8, 2019July 18, 2024 by Phil Robinson

Where’s that bacon my site promised?

Get a website, they said. It will bring customers, they said. But it’s not. Why? Put simply: if your website sucks, it won’t convert.

There could be a lot of reasons to explain why a website isn’t pulling the pork. It could be that you have poor or even no content besides a home page. It could be an “artistic” design choice. Or it could be difficult to navigate with a complicated or confusing site structure. But they all come down to the same thing; if your website isn’t converting, it’s because it sucks.

Content is King

Content is the stuff on your site. Typically videos, images, and words. And the more useful and relevant it is to your audience, the more likely your site will perform well. Sure, a video of a monkey riding a lamb and kicking a football into a goal is cute, but it probably doesn’t have much relevance to what you do. Unless you make it relate. “Hop on the lamb and score at our unexpected sale, one-day only!”

The original is always the best

At least that’s what stubborn old people like to say. But unlike Batman and Ocean’s Eleven—that we can all agree got better later on—original content is unequivocally the best content for your website. Original content simply means that it’s not copied from somewhere else. It’s pictures that you take, videos that you star in, and articles written specifically for you.

That doesn’t mean you can’t use information from other sources. Linking out to an article with similar information can even be helpful, but it’s important to extract information and rewrite it for your audience using original wording. Think of it like writing essays in school; plagiarism, citing sources = good!

Customise, don’t compromise!

Your site design gives an immediate impression about your business. A tacky, homemade site with weird colour combinations and misaligned elements you made for your first assignment in an Intro Web Development class shouldn’t be used for your professional business. A bad design will kill your site—unless it’s so bad that it gains legendary status, like Arngren or LingsCars.

You might be thinking that maybe you should try that route and throw design principles out the window… But think of how many others with weird designs failed along the way. Yeah, not worth it.

Design is about aesthetics and usability

Good design isn’t all about appearance. A pretty site filled with broken links and no good way to get to other pages won’t perform well, because big brother (a.k.a. Google) is watching. You can’t neglect the appearance either. Ugly-looking sites are an immediate bye-bye for nearly two-thirds of consumers.

A lot of templates on web-building sites look nice at first glance, but use one and you’ll quickly find the limitations. You’re limited to certain colours. You can’t change picture locations. Or sizes. The ugly font choice is locked in. And so on. These template sites aren’t bad for a personal blog or a tiny, single-person side hustle, but as a site for your main business, getting a custom design is the much better option, especially if you want to grow and expand.

Is your site structure natural and intuitive?

Over the years, we’ve gotten used to expecting certain elements on a page. Like clicking on the logo to go back to the home page. Or that little down arrow that will expand content without taking you to a new page. Or highlighting menu elements on hover and showing a preview of the drop-down list. And plenty, plenty more usability features that are nearly ubiquitous these days. Forgetting one is annoying. Two, irritating. But a bunch? Might as well tape a picture to a cardboard box with a computer screen drawn on it for all the good your site will do.

Content + Design + Usability = Unsucky Site

So if your website isn’t converting, the solution is straightforward; make it less bad. And more good. Sure, it’s straightforward, but not necessarily easy—it requires an investment of time, effort, and usually some dollars as well. How do you do it? Create original, useful, relevant content (Or have a writer create it for you). Fashion an attractive, pretty, well-designed website (Or better yet, have a designer fashion one for you). Build an intuitive, friendly, navigable website (Or have a web developer build it for you).

Or of course, you can always leave it all to the experts.

Does YOUR website suck? Click below to get a free website audit and find out!

Websites Are Like Staff

Posted on April 1, 2019December 8, 2025 by Phil Robinson

Websites are like staff: An investment, not a cost!

Imagine if as a business owner, that you could hire and train the ideal, staff member for your business, a perfect customer service rep, marketer and salesperson. All rolled in to one! They would comprehend everything about your products and understand just what prospective customers need to know so that they’ll decide to choose you over a competitor. Over time, this employee would become an incredible asset to your company, and one you couldn’t live without, wouldn’t they?

Now imagine that you’re going to hire this person. How would you do it? Would you hire the first person who walked through the door that mentioned the word “sales” on their resume without checking into their experience, work ethic, or skills? Or would find someone who has a stellar record with glowing references and proven experience?

Probably the second one. Right?

The same should go for your website. Simply choosing the first free website builder you come across or the cheapest company that can stitch one together for you without considering its long-term function and workability is like hiring that first person who comes through your door. Sure, it’s possible that they’ll become that ace salesperson you dreamed of, but that’s unlikely. Plus, wouldn’t you interview other candidates first to make sure?

When done properly, your website can be your hardest-working salesperson, one that works around the clock to generate new leads and point customers to the right department. It can provide them with the information they need to buy from you directly, or collect their details for someone to give you a call back during business hours. And it can bring customers to you from all over town—or even around the world.

But aren’t professionally designed websites expensive?

Not when you consider the return. And if you think of your website as another employee, you’ll come to find that it’s a pretty amazing deal. It’s like paying a signing bonus for that perfect salesperson, but then practically no salary afterwards; besides the very small occasional maintenance and upkeep costs, they work for free!

A well-designed website, like your star sales team, is an investment, not a cost. By knowing what you’re looking for and how you want it to work for you, it can become a part of your staff. And you’ll wonder how you ever survived without them.

So I should replace my staff?

No, not at all. Your website can’t and shouldn’t replace real staff. Instead, it’s a tool that the team can use to help qualify leads and give a potential client the right information. It’s something people access from the comfort of their home and they can research as deep as they need to in order to make a decision. But like your staff, it will only work well if you’re willing to invest time, effort, and cash into making it perfect.

Where’s my new website?

Posted on March 1, 2019December 21, 2021 by Phil Robinson

So you’ve built a brand new website, made it pretty, and filled it full of great content and information about your business. Then, you go and type it into Google to see it live. And… Nothing. You can’t find it. Your site couldn’t hide better if it was the child of Where’s Wally and Carmen Sandiego. Don’t worry–you aren’t alone! In this article we’ll cover some reasons why you might not be able to find your new website.

A new website takes time to index

Indexing is the process of adding a website to Google’s database. If Google doesn’t know the site exists, they can’t show it to people. This process takes time, so you might not be able to find your website from a Google search for a little while. Google also ranks new sites lower than existing sites, so it could be that your site isn’t high enough in the results yet. The rankings will naturally improve over time as long as you follow SEO best practices.

You can still find your site directly

Thankfully, if you’re having trouble finding your new site through a Google search, you can still access it by typing in the full URL directly. Often, you’re also able to type that URL into Google and get your site to show up that way, although that isn’t much use to someone who’s looking for it. In the meantime, you can wait–or invest into Google ads to at least show up as an ad in the search results.

Why is there even a wait at all?

One reason why your brand new site won’t show up instantly is because of the sheer number of websites and pages that exist. There is an estimated 1.5 billion websites that currently exist and over 1 quadrillion individual pages. That’s more than 10 times the amount of all the money that exists in the world! A million isn’t even a drop in the bucket when you’re dealing with quadrillions, though a million dollars would still be nice to have!

Search engines like Google process this sheer volume of sites through crawling and indexing. “Crawling” is when a web “spider” goes through websites searching for new information–like the existence of your new site. Once Google’s itsy bitsy spider finds your site, the site is indexed, or read over to make sure that the site has quality content and the information the crawler is looking for. If you’ve registered your site in Google Webmaster, you can request it to be indexed manually, but it will still take some time to appear in the results, especially when it’s brand new.

Isn’t there a way to speed up the process somehow?

While you can’t really do anything to speed up the indexing process, there is something you can do to make your site appear sometimes in the search results while you wait. Get an AdWords account and run some ads on Google. AdWords is still a good idea when your site is indexed as it has shown to be an effective tool for increasing revenue when done well, but it can be a huge boost to those first few weeks when you aren’t showing up in searches.

However, the ads can drain your budget quickly if you’re unfamiliar with the platform and don’t know how to use it’s many tools. Google offers free training you can go through to learn the basics, or you can always get the help of our knowledgeable team to manage the accounts on your behalf! We also have a certified Google Ads team here at Back9. Find out more on our article 9 Key Reasons to use Google Ads, or get in touch today!

5 Ways to Help Reduce Your Website’s Page Loading Speed

Posted on July 16, 2018December 8, 2025 by Allison Robinson

The old adage “patience is a virtue” doesn’t really apply online.

When it comes to website loading speed, even a one-second delay can dramatically reduce pageviews, customer satisfaction, and drop conversions.

The speed of your website even affects your website’s performance and subsequently your organic search rankings for SEO. Since 2010, Google has been accounting for a site speed in its algorithm.

So what’s the biggest factor contributing to your page speed?

Size does matter.

It takes browsers time to download the code that makes up your page. It has to download your HTML, your stylesheets, your scripts and your images. All this means it can take a while to download all that data.

As web users expect more engaging website, or UX UI design, the size of a site’s resource files will continue to grow. Each new feature requires a new script or stylesheet that weighs down your site just a little more.

How do you make sure your site is up to speed?

There are some great resources for analysing your site’s speed. Google’s PageSpeed Insights, and GTMetrix are the most popular. Both services will analyse your site and tell you where you’re falling behind.

A little warning: the results can be a bit daunting sometimes, but most fixes are relatively quick and easy. You might not fix everything the speed service recommends, but you should fix enough to make the site experience better for your visitors.

Let’s learn how to speed things up!

Out-of-the-box template solutions like WordPress and Joomla for example are great but do require the know how a little manual labour to get up to speed – It can all be quite daunting, so we are here to help – Obviously expert help comes at a price, but sometimes an investment in the right help can save you time and money in the long run…

Read about the benefits of a custom designed website here…

Now let’s look at some essential speed solutions that every webmaster should consider.

1. Optimize Images

Images are one of the most common bandwidth hogs on the web.

The first way to optimize your images is to scale them appropriately.

Many webmasters use huge images and then scale them down with CSS. What they don’t realize is that your browser still loads them at the full image size.

For example, if you have an image that is 1000 x 1000 pixels, but you have scaled it down to 100 x 100 pixels, your browser must load ten times more than necessary.

Scale your images before you upload them to your site, so you don’t ask for more from your visitors than you should.

Take a look at the size difference when we scaled down one of our images:

The second way to optimize your images is to compress them.

There are several free online tools for image compression, such astinypng.com, that can reduce your image sizes dramatically without losing quality. You can see size reductions anywhere from 25% to 80%!

2. Browser Caching

Why make visitors download the same things every time they load a page?

Enabling browser caching lets you temporarily store some data on a visitors’ computer, so they don’t have to wait for it to load every time they visit your page.

How long you store the data depends on their browser configuration and your server-side cache settings.

To set up browser caching on your server, check out the resources below or contact your hosting company:

3. Compression

Enabling compression is like putting your website into a zip file.

Compression can dramatically reduce your page’s size and thereby increase its speed. According to Digital.gov, The smaller the better, when it comes to page resources.

Compression can knock off 50 – 70% from your HTML and CSS files! That’s a ton of data your visitor won’t have to download.

Compression is a server setting, so how you implement it will depend on your webserver and its settings. Below are some resources for the most common webservers. If you don’t see yours, contact your hosting company to see what they can do.

4. Optimize Your CSS

Your CSS loads before people see your site. The longer it takes for them to download your CSS, the longer they wait. And the slower your website loading speed.

Optimized CSS means your files will download faster, giving your visitors quicker access to your pages.

Start by asking yourself, “do I use all of my CSS?” If not, get rid of the superfluous code in your files. Every little bit of wasted data can add up until your website’s snail-pace speed scares away your visitors.

Next, you should minimize your CSS files. Extra spaces in your stylesheets increase file size. CSS minimization removes those extra spaces from your code to ensure your file is at its smallest size.

So how do you minimize your CSS files?

First, see if your CMS already minimizes your CSS or if there’s an option for it. HubSpot, for example, already minimizes your CSS by default whereas WordPress or Joomla do not.

If your CMS does not have a minimize CSS option, you can use a free online service like CSS Minifier to minimize your files. Simply paste in your CSS and hit “Compress” to see your newly minimized stylesheet.

Minimizing your resource files is a great way to knock some size off your files. Trust me—those little spaces add up quickly.

5. Keep Your Scripts Below the Fold to improve website loading speed

Javascript files can load after the rest of your page, but if you put them all before your content—as many sites do—they will load before your content does.

This affects your website loading speed and means your visitors must wait until your Javascript files load before they see your page, and we know how much they like waiting.

The simplest solution is to place your external Javascript files at the bottom of your page, just before the close of your body tag. Now more of your site can load before your scripts.

Another method that allows even more control is to use the defer or async attributes when placing external .js files on your site.

Both defer and async are very useful, but make sure you understand the difference before you use them:

Async tags load the scripts while the rest of the page loads, but this means scripts can be loaded out of order. Basically, lighter files load first. This might be fine for some scripts, but can be disastrous for others.
The defer attribute loads your scripts after your content has finished loading. It also runs the scripts in order. Just make sure your scripts run so late without breaking your site.

All you need to do is add a simple word in your <script> tags.

For example, you can take your original script

<script type=”text/javascript” src=”/path/filename.js”></script>

And add the little code to ensure it loads when you want it.

<script type=”text/javascript” src=”/path/filename.js” defer></script>
<script type=”text/javascript” src=”/path/filename.js” async></script>

The importance of your scripts will determine if they get an attribute and which attribute you tack on. More essential scripts should probably have the async attribute so they can load ASAP without holding up the rest of your content. The nonessential ones, however, should wait until the end to ensure visitors see your page faster.

But for the best website loading speed, always make sure you test each script to ensure the attribute doesn’t break your site!

Conclusion

As online users demand a richer online experience, the size of our pages will continue to grow. There will be flashier Javascript, more CSS tricks and more third-party analytics to weigh down our sites, but we can’t let this bog us down.

A little attention will go a long way—remember, just a one-second delay is all it takes to lose a lead, so you need to also think about what those lost leads may cost and whether you are using an out-of-the-box template or a custom design.

Category: Websites