Websites in the past were set and forget. They were passive billboards that gently waved at you as you passed by on your web journeys.

Content rarely changed and the only form of interaction was a contact form that allowed you to request information or a phone call from “Mr or Mrs Anonymous“.

They were simple and passive and images and video were rarely included. They were also islands from business processes and systems and sat alone as an online brochure.

Today they are living and breathing portals of multi-media, interaction and integration. CEO’s and executives are waking up to the fact that creating and investing in your most valuable digital asset is now an imperative rather than an optional requirement.

It is your front door and reception to the global economy that can deliver more traffic and leads than traditional marketing and your bricks and mortar stores. 

It can take you from local to global.

Maintaining and investing in your webiste is vital and a necessity. 

So what are the “10 Deadly Dangers” of not maintaining your prized online assets?

#1. Risk of Getting Hacked

If you value your online presence and it is generating leads and producing sales with your online store then a recurring nightmare is logging into your website and it looks like some has taken to it with an axe. It has been hacked! Websites that are not updated to the latest version are much more prone to invasive hacking as hackers over time discover the back doors to gain entry for older and . Updating your website to the latest version is one easy way to make it more secure. This needs to be done on an ongoing basis.

#2. Search Engines Can’t Find Your Business

Older websites were often not built for search engines. Keywords and phrases that are the terms that people use to find you in search engines are not easily found by Google’s crawlers on your website.  Updating your website that is optimised for search engines is now mandatory for a modren and successful business

#3. Bad Brand Image

If your bricks and mortar store looks shabby you need to renovate or even start from scratch. Websites that look like they were built by a mad monk doesn’t give your brand image any favours.

#4. Needs a Programmer to make any Changes

If your website was built a few years ago it is not unusual for it to ne built with a programming language called “HTML” . This type of website typically needs a programmer to update content. In a fast moving and competitive environment waiting for your outsourced web designer to make changes can cost you a lot of money as opportunities to market and promote pass you by. 

#5. Users Click Away to Your Competition

Usability is a big issue for older websites and if you make it hard for people to navigate then it is not unusual for clients to click away to your competition. Redesign and develop with an easy to use interface that makes it easy for people to find and buy your products once they land on your website

#6. Poor Visual Communication

Older websites are typically text heavy. The web has changed dramatically in the last 2 years. People have less time and need to very quickly know what your business is about when they land on your website or blog.  Communicating with visual imagery can literally communicate a message almost instantly. Many of the your generation will want to view images and videos and will run away from big blogs of  text.

#7. Doesn’t Capture Emails Efficiently

Building a database of  interested potential customers is”Marketing 101″. Does your website provide multiple ways to capture emails Does your website have a subscribe form on every page and in multiple locations?

Do you provide incentives for prospects to volunteer their email adresses? Offering an ebook is a simple and effective way to increase email capture by 300-400%.  

#8. Not Social and Shareable 

On an increasingly social web making it hard for people to share your content will stop the spread of your brand online. Maintaining and updating your website for optimal sharing on Twitter and Facebook is essential.

#9. The Content Scares People

In the past websites were sales brochures built online. It was about “selling” the customer. Selling and marketing has moved on. Now it is about inbound marketing, offering content in a variety of formats that educates and informs and attracts the client to your business. It is no longer about shouting at the customer but pulling the customer to you theough atrtractive content that solves problems and postions your brand as thought leaders in their industry. Content marketing is the “new black” of marketing tactics and strategies. Does your website do this?

#10. Website is an Isolated Island of Data

Many websites that do capture emails do not feed into any database systems. In todays digital age it is vital for both business efficiency and marketing effectiveness to integrate with accounting systems, CRM’s and other backend business systems. It can start as simply as capturing emails that are fed automatically into your email marketing database. This could be for platforms such Mail Chimp, Exact Target or your own CRM database. This will save you time, money and also increase your marketing effectiveness. 

So What About You?

Is your website an archaic dinosaur that is costing you hundreds of thousands of  dollars in lost opportunities? Is it in danger of being hacked and taken offline for days?

Does your online brand look like an afterthought and amatuer? Can search engines find your business or are you hidden in a universe of 550 million websites.

Talk to us today about how we can take you from invisible to visible and ensure that you are making the best of your digital assets before your competition does!

Image by MrB-MMX

Image by