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Too often a small business owner will publish a website, then they never revisit it. Having a website is not a one-and-done process. The digital world is constantly changing, and your website needs to move and change with it. It’s important to make ongoing changes and updates to your website – for visitors and for Google. You need to make sure your website is working properly, and that it accurately reflects your business today and what you do now. Making updates won’t take that much time. If you just start with these four website updates, you can make a huge difference! 

Update your text content

Review the text on your website. Take some time to revisit the old and make it look brand new.

• Do your products and services need to be updated?
• Do you offer something new that you forgot to add to your website?

Making text updates often is a great way to let search engines know that new content has been published. People who visit your site regularly will notice you made updates and might come back to see what else is new. 

Check out your competitor's website

It's a good idea to check in your competitors to see what they've been up to.

• Did they launch a new and improved website while you weren’t looking?
• Did they add features that should be on your site as well?

It might be time to play catch-up to stay relevant. 

Update your keywords

You want people to find you on a search engine like Google. We type keywords and phrases into search engines to find a business like yours. Keywords come from search queries so make sure you add the most relevant terms to your website content. Now you’re helping Google rank your website pages so they’re found by potential customers and clients. There are two categories of keywords based on length:

• Short keywords: One or two terms (broad topics).
• Long-tail keywords: Typically three or more terms (more specific).

 You can use Google to find keywords by typing in some letters and seeing what the Google suggestion engine gives you. Keyword.io is another free tool that will give you a list of keyword suggestions to narrow down your keyword list. https://www.keyword.io/ 

Write some blog posts

One easy way to update your website regularly is to write blog posts. Blogs can be:

• A quick update on business and your staff.
• Announcements of new products and updated services
• Behind the scenes of things at your location.

If you have a blog but it’s been awhile since you posted, now is the time to add at least one new post. Then put it on your schedule to add at least one post every month going forward. That’s it! Your website will perform better once it’s refreshed and renewed!