Website Re-Design: (When) Should I do it?

Written by Kevin Liew on 05 Apr 2017
4,976 Views • Miscellaneous

Creating a new website today is easy - you take into account all the design trends and programming best practices, you take care of your website looking friendly on all the potential devices people may use to access it, you keep in mind all the recent recommendations of SEO experts and UX gurus, and give it a go.

When it comes to creating a new interface for your old web property, though, things might get a bit tricky. You have to be aware of your customer base's feelings about your website's new look - and new functionality in some cases. There are times when re-designing your website is unnecessary - in such cases, you can keep your current look and feel, and perhaps make some minor changes behind the scene. There are, in turn, cases where a complete redo of the website becomes necessary. Today, we'll take a look at some scenarios where a redesign is necessary.

Keeping the old look?

There are times when keeping the old look - and giving your website a new functionality - is the best option. For an example, take a look at the website of the All Slots Casino at https://ca.allslotscasino.com/.

The All Slots has a long history of quality service, being established in 2002. Over its decade and a half of history, the All Slots has maintained not only its well-known logo but its website's overall look and feel. For 15 years, the logo of the website has remained the same, and so have the basic colors of the design. Of course, the arrangement of the website has changed several times over the years. Still, a visitor at the All Slots that hasn't been there for years would find his or her way around on the website easily even today, even if its functionality has changed quite a lot.

When to redesign?

If your website is old, you might want to give it a good look from as many devices as possible. If you find that it fails to render properly, especially on mobile devices, you'd better take it back to the drawing board. Over the years, the types of devices used to access the internet have become more diverse. Today, it's important to welcome visitors coming from any device - smartphones with bigger or smaller screens, smart TVs and gaming consoles (these have no Flash support either) - and serve a viewable and usable interface to them.

Besides, you should take a look at what your competitors offer their visitors. Sometimes, it's the beauty of a website, as well as its ease of use, that makes all the difference for an undecided customer. Don't change your website only because your competition did, though - sometimes, they are the ones following your footsteps or have a problem to solve that you didn't from the first time.

Here're the summary of reasons when a redesign is needed:

  • Your current website isn't flexible enough to adapt the changes.
  • Your product or service or the nature of your business has changed.
  • You are launching a new product or services.
  • You want to add new technology or functionality to serve your customers better.
  • You want to stay competitive in your market.
  • Your website is simply too old!
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