How to Analyze Your Site with a Designer's Insight

Having a website is super important for any business these days, whether you sell stuff online or not. People rely on the internet to learn about and buy things, with a whopping 82% of smartphone users checking online before they head to a store.

But just having a website isn't enough. You've gotta keep it fresh and up-to-date to keep those visitors coming and turning into customers. Your website needs to grow and change as your business does.

So, at the start of each year, it's a good idea to take a look at your website and see what needs tweaking. In this guide, we'll break down the basics of how to do just that, whether it's your own site or your competition's.

1.Consider The Audience

When you're checking out a website, remember who it's for. It's not about showing off how fancy it is; it's about making sure it's easy for the people who'll be using it.

Imagine you're the person who's supposed to be using the site. Would you find it easy to get around? Would you get what you need from it? It's like trying on a pair of shoes to see if they fit right.

If you can, get someone who's like your typical website visitor to give it a test run. Give them some tasks to do on the site and ask them what they think. Their feedback can tell you if the website is hitting the mark or if it needs some tweaks.

2. Check The Site Is Well Optimised

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is all about making sure your website shows up well in search engines like Google.

When your site is optimized, it's more likely to pop up higher in search results. And there are lots of little things you can do to improve its SEO. One big part is using the right keywords in your content so that Google knows what your site is all about.

You should also make sure your page titles and descriptions are spot on, add ALT text to your images, format your content correctly, and use H1 tags for headings. Plus, you want your site to load fast and have a tidy link structure.

These tweaks might seem small, but they can make a big difference in how well your site performs in search results.

3. Discover the website's position for important keywords.

Google Search Console is a handy tool that gives you a peek into how Google sees your website and how it's doing.

When you link Search Console to Google Analytics, you get even more detailed info to help you fine-tune your site.

One cool feature is the "Performance Report," which shows where your site stands for specific keywords. It tells you stuff like how many visits you get from each keyword, where those visitors are coming from, and what devices they're using.

Since keywords are key to SEO, it's smart to regularly check which ones you're targeting. Make sure they match up with what you're offering and what people are searching for. That way, you can stay on top of the game.

4. Identify And Redirect Broken Links

Broken links can really bum out your website visitors and make your company look bad.

They happen when someone clicks on a link, but instead of finding what they're looking for, they get an error message like "Oops, this page doesn't exist anymore."

It's super important to keep an eye out for broken links because they mess with the user experience, and Google doesn't like that. And when Google's not happy, your site's ranking can take a hit.

Luckily, there are lots of free tools out there to help you find broken links, like Google Analytics, Sitechecker, InterroBot, and Screaming Frog.

Once you've spotted broken links, you can use a CMS like Wordpress to redirect them properly using the right error code. That way, visitors won't hit a dead end, and you won't lose out on potential customers.

5. Run A Content Audit

Content is a powerhouse when it comes to generating leads, even more so than paid search ads, as per the Content Marketing Institute.

However, it's not just about churning out any old content. Quality is key. Your content should be substantial, well-organized, and offer something fresh and valuable to your audience.

Regularly reviewing and updating your content is crucial. Don't overlook the opportunity to breathe new life into older but successful content pieces. If you have a blog post that's driving tons of traffic and sitting pretty at the top of Google's rankings, don't just toss it because it's from a few years back.

Instead, give it a makeover! Update the information to make it current, and don't forget to add a note showing when you revised it. That way, you keep the good stuff working for you and your audience stays engaged.

6. Optimize For Mobile

The number of people using the internet on their mobile phones has been steadily climbing, hitting a whopping 4.3 billion globally in 2023.

And since 2015, Google's been taking mobile-friendliness seriously when it comes to ranking websites.

To help you keep up, Google offers a handy tool called Lighthouse. It's free and lets website owners see just how mobile-friendly their site is.

But here's the thing: it's not enough to just check one page. Give a few different pages a spin to get a good feel for how your site performs on mobile.

Oh, and speed matters, too! Nobody likes waiting around for a website to load, especially on their phone. So keep that in mind when you're sprucing up your site for mobile users.