You've invested the time, energy and money into building a great website, one that you believe will drive traffic and create opportunities for your business. Web-wise, you're done, and you can sit back and reap the rewards of your Internet presence, right? Not exactly. There's no denying that creating a website and placing yourself in the online sphere is the first (and a very essential) part of effectively marketing your business. Proper Internet marketing is not a one-step process, however. Like any good marketing tool, a website is only effective if it's relevant; having an outdated site is arguably more detrimental than having no site at all.
Not convinced? Put yourself in a user's (and potential customer's) position. Who wants to trust a source that is "stagnant" or out of date? Regardless of what they are consuming, customers want to believe that what you are offering them is available (who hasn't been excited by the lure of a special offer, and equally frustrated when told that the offer no longer exists?). Consumers also need to feel that they won't be able to find an improved version of your product elsewhere.
Beyond the practical reasons for an updated website are less obvious but equally important psychological motivations. A website with outdated information can easily be perceived as an indication of sloppiness or indifference on the part of the distributor; both indications are likely to breed distrust among customers. (If a business can't be bothered to update their website, perhaps they can't be bothered to do other potentially vital things.)
So you know that website maintenance is an important part of your online strategy. But how do you know how much website maintenance is enough, and what type of maintenance is right for your website? Before delving into any specific details, try to evaluate your business based on the following criteria:
Information Type.
Put more simply, what are you trying to sell? Is it a tangible product, some form of skill or knowledge, or something different? The way you maintain your site, and how often you maintain it, will naturally have a lot to do with what you are promoting.
"Season".
Can you identify a time of year (be it a quarter, a month, or even a week) when business opportunities are at their biggest and you want your website promotion to really go the distance?
Clearly, this is not always an easy question to answer (unless you run a website advertising Halloween costumes or holiday trinkets). Most businesses have loosely defined ebbs and flows in their output, which make the "season" parameter hard to define. But if you can come up with a target time frame, based up on experience and research, when you believe your business can really extend its potential, then you can aim to extend your site maintenance plans accordingly.
Audience.
Who is going to be looking at your site? Remember that maintenance plans with lots of "bells and whistles" may be a waste of time and money for businesses marketing to a more low-tech audience, or to an audience whose informational needs are simpler.
Budget and Resources.
Depending on the size of your website, and the frequency with which you make changes, anywhere from one to ten hours per month should suffice. Most website design firms offer maintenance packages whereby the more hours you sign up for, the less the cost per hour.
Long Term Strategy.
Treat your website maintenance plans as you would any other business plan-one that involves advance planning thought. All too often, businesses consider maintenance as an afterthought-something to be taken care of as time allows and with whatever budget is remaining. Make this mistake, and you'll be playing catch-up for the duration of your site's existence.
Part II: Typical Types of Website Maintenance
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