A new website should bring in more business, not less. Yet it’s common for a business to launch a beautiful redesign and watch its Google traffic drop the following month. The design usually isn’t the problem. The problem is what got lost in the move: old page addresses, content that ranked, and settings nobody remembered to carry over.
Not every tired-looking website needs to be torn down and rebuilt. Sometimes a few focused changes bring it back to life. Other times, patching an old site just means paying to fix the same problems over and over. Knowing the difference can save you thousands of dollars and months of time.
A website isn’t something you finish. It runs on software that changes constantly, it holds business details that go out of date, and it competes in search results that never stop moving. The good news is that keeping a small business website healthy mostly comes down to a short list of tasks done on a regular schedule.
Your website went live, the invoice is paid, and now someone is asking you to pay every month to “maintain” it. It’s fair to wonder what that money actually buys, and whether you need it. The honest answer depends on your site, your business and how much of the work you want on your own plate.
Google reviews do two jobs at once. They help convince a new customer to call you instead of the business listed next to you, and Google itself says more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking. Most small businesses have plenty of happy customers. The problem is that very few of them leave a review unless someone asks.
When someone in Tampa Bay searches for “roofer near me” or “accountant in Brandon,” Google usually shows a map with three businesses under it before any regular website results. That box is called the local pack, or map pack, and for most service businesses it’s the most valuable spot on the page. The businesses in it get the calls, the direction requests and the website visits.
Your Google Business Profile is free, it shows up on Google Maps, and customers can call you straight from it. So it’s a fair question for any small business owner in Riverview, Apollo Beach or anywhere in Tampa Bay: if the profile already brings in calls, do you really need a website too?
Most business owners know they need a website. Fewer realize that a website isn’t a one-time project. Once it launches, someone has to keep it secure, current and working. That someone is a webmaster.
Your website is often the first impression a potential customer has of your business. In a competitive market like Tampa Bay, that impression happens in seconds, and an outdated site can send people straight to a competitor before they ever read about your services.