For the New Year, I wrote an article on Small Biz Trends titled “Your Website: Do You Know When It’s Time for A Tune-Up?” The purpose of this post was to provide people with a checklist of things to do to make sure that their websites are in tip-top shape. The article discusses how to give your website a weekly, monthly and quarterly check-up. This week let’s look at how the TTG team goes about an item in the weekly check-up.
The 3 items in the weekly check-up are:
- Spot Check
- Read Google Webmaster Report
- Review Your Google Analytics
Today we’ll focus on Spot Checking
When a website is built, most companies spend a great deal of time testing, but after the launch, edits are made from week to week and the testing mentality is not often as thorough. When you spot-check your website, here are a few things to look at:
Review older or staple pages
Check to see if the links on the older pages are broken. Next, review where the links send your web visitor; is this the copy you expected? They may not be broken links, but the content may not be what you would want your customer to click to if they came across this page. Often times we have found older pages, or even staple pages like team bios, can have incorrect links, but not broken links. |
Check for Inconsistencies
Are all the icons you’re using the same style? Have you found one that looks different? Be sure to click the links and make sure they all go to the same place. Recently I found two different Twitter icons on a new client’s site; one went to the correct Twitter handle and the other did not. It was not a broken link, but the variation in the Twitter icon that caused me to think someone else created this link, not the original designer. |
Comparison of Duplicate Information
You have heard me say this before: duplication on your website can be a good thing. You will have your contact information on the contact page, but it may also be in your website footer. Review the duplicate information you have and make sure it is the same. You’d be surprised how many people change a phone number on the contact page but forget the footer. Also, be sure to look through your site for elements embedded in the copy. For example if you tell people to “Call You at ##” and you have your number on the page to keep them from having to look for it, then that will need changing too. There is no program or bot to help with this; you will need a human being to review and spot check this type of item. |
Spot-checking is an opportunity for you to catch things with fresh eyes. Be sure to spot check your web site when you are in a good head space and not rushing.