Websites should never be ‘set and forget’ assets.
Although a fantastic website doesn’t require new information or design work added on a weekly basis, there are essential areas of every website that need attention to be safe, secure and function correctly for years to come. A little monthly work can go a long way, and when you’ve invested money and time into a brand new website – it’s important to remember that websites should never be ‘set and forget’ assets.
Here are some top tips when managing your website each month:
1. Plugins
Plugins require updates when new versions become available. If you are using any plugins on your website (and if you have an aesthetic and functional website, you are likely to be using several plugins), it’s important to ensure all plugins are updated and functioning correctly. Why? Outdated plugins not only affect the functionality of your website (areas may not work at all, or your site may break and not load correctly), but they also leave your website vulnerable to hacking attempts. Think of them as leaving a door unlocked to unwanted guests. The good news is, that you can enable automatic updates for many plugins within WordPress.
2. Security checks
Run frequent security and malware scans to protect your website against hackers and brute-force attacks. You may think that hackers don’t target small fish, but it’s simply not true. Malicious website activity happens across a broad spectrum of sites, small to large. The intent is not always clear either. Sometimes it may be to cause damage, other times it may be to steal. Regardless of the intent, protecting yourself with regular security checks and malware scans is an important monthly task that you should pop into your diary.
3. Secure password updates
Update your passwords regularly and enable two-factor authentication for all users. A cyber security connection we have here at MM has informed us that a 16-character password is most secure. Try to create one with a mix of numbers, letters, cases and symbols when it comes to choosing a password. So say goodbye to Password123! and find something a little more complex.
4. Content checks
Run your eyes over your website content to ensure everything is up to date and no areas need attention. This could be pricing changes, team updates, or even wording changes to past blogs that need to be refreshed to remain relevant. Ultimately, refreshing blogs is a great way to update content without writing a new article from scratch too!
5. Ensuring your GA4 property and Meta Pixel is functioning correctly
Is your Google Analytics code and Meta (Facebook) Pixel installed correctly? Is your website correctly linked to these platforms so you can analyse user data and understand your advertising results more accurately? The sooner you sort this the better, as this allows your business to thrive and grow! You can hire a professional (like us!) to install these codes into the back end of your website and reap the rewards for years to come.
By doing so, you’ll be able to understand what pages your customers visit, for how long, on what devices and more. It’s a great learning tool to teach you what resonates (and what doesn’t) with your target market, so you can improve your website moving forward!
6. Test links and contact forms
It’s important to test contact forms monthly to make sure they’re working. Just because they worked once, doesn’t ensure they’ll always function. And when it comes to important areas of your website like contact forms, It’s best to test! While you’re at it, click on the links and make sure everything you’ve linked on your website goes to the right destination. For example, if it’s an external link, you may find the page has since moved or been deleted. Little louder for the people in the back? It’s always best to test!
Help is not far away!
The moral of the story is that your website needs a little monthly TLC to remain tip top. If you need a hand managing your website, get in touch! Whether that’s updating content or ensuring your website is safe and secure each month – email Del today. We offer affordable maintenance packages to ensure your website continues to function efficiently without downtime, and we’d be happy to help. Contact us today, or shoot us a message on Facebook, because websites should never be ‘set and forget’ assets.
