Creating a website is a very different process than writing a book. Unlike an author, a business owner never gets to write those satisfying words, “The End.”

Adding new content regularly to your website is a marketing essential, both in terms of capturing customer attention and boosting SEO rankings. That being said, there’s a certain amount of content that absolutely needs to be in place before your site goes live: without it, you won’t be delivering an optimized, sales-generating experience for your customer.

Have Essential Content in Place Before Launch

During the website development process, you should be discussing what content is absolutely essential to your visitors’ experience. This list can include information about your products and services, contact information, an about us story and more – you’ll determine what’s right for your business in partnership with your developer. All of this content should be in place before your site is launched.

During the testing phase, you or a member of your leadership team should review this content closely. Is it working properly, conveying your messaging effectively and creating the experience you want your customers to have?

Make note of any information or steps along the sales channel that appears to be missing. Determinations will need to be made if this content needs to be in place prior to site launch or if it can wait until the site goes live.

Content Can & Should Be Added After Your Site Goes Live

One way to think about content on your website is the way you’d think about merchandise in a retail store. A retailer doesn’t decide on one merchandise mix and display that in perpetuity. Instead, they’re constantly mixing things up, displaying new and exciting merchandise in order to keep shoppers interested.

Your website should work the same way. Dynamic content elements, like blog entries, videos, and front page imagery, keep website visitors engaged. There’s also a significant SEO boost associated with updating content frequently. Google gives higher rankings to sites that are updated regularly, while sites that keep the same content without changes for long periods of time tend to lose their ranking.

As a best practice, you’ll want to be adding new content to your website at least monthly, if not weekly. Develop a strategy outlining what content you want to add, as well as the best time to roll that content out. Done well, content marketing via your website is one of the most efficient ways to drive sales.

This does mean your website is never officially done. But from where we’re sitting, a website that’s never ‘done’ that consistently captures customer interest, builds brand recognition, and generates sales is infinitely better than a ‘finished’ website that through inactivity alone is incapable of doing any of these things. If you agree, and you’d like a website that delivers real results, give us a call today. We’re here to help!