Companies redesign their websites regularly, because they want to make sure that they meet the latest marketing trends. One of the main issues companies are dealing with, when they redesign their websites is that the web server fails to do its job, because of the high traffic volumes. When the server is not properly functioning, the pages are timing out and the time response is similar to a snail’s peace. It is the worst nightmare a website can bring, and it can happen if the page is not tested before being launched. The result is a drop in the customers’ satisfaction levels, something all companies want to avoid.
In a nutshell this happens when the infrastructure of the website, and the web page itself is not properly planned and tested to see how it behaves for certain traffic volumes. Because it is a more common scenario than the majority of people think, new strategies to avoid it are always at search.
In order to prevent this from happening, a simple step has to be conducted, both the site and its infrastructure should be checked and reviewed to see how it reacts under multiple situations.
Here is why more and more companies prefer to test their websites before launching them to their audience.
The content has to be high-quality
- Editors and writers check the content from websites to see if the grammar and spelling are correct. Many times the content contains typos, but because the writer is subjective, someone else should verify it, to see if the content is correctly written. Not only the headlines and text are tested, but also the calls-to-action, navigations, forms and buttons.
When checking the forms on a website, the testers ask themselves some questions.
- Does the form get to the right person when they are completed?
- Are the instructions helpful?
- Is the user stuck when filling the form?
- Can the flow of the form be improved?
- The images uploaded on the website are also checked, because they have to be optimised for the web. It is important their size not to be too large and they should not drain the speed of the website. All images should contain the right alt-text and titles.
The person who analyses the website has a critical eye, and when they complete the review, they answer to questions like:
- Does the website address the needs of the public?
- Is the content user-friendly?
- Is this page worth checking it?
The design of the website should be flawless
- One of the main purposes testers have is to see if the navigation of the web page is effective. They check if all the journeys through the site lead to where they should meant to do it. Any wrong pages or broken links are noted. Sometimes, when writing the code of the pages, the developers do not check to see how the font looks, and there are not few the cases when a phrase, word or letter look funny. The format of the pages should be consistent.
- Nowadays people are accessing websites from numerous devices that are connected to the internet. The role of the testers is to check if the website is friendly with multiple formats, especially with the mobile ones. In 2019, it should not be difficult to build a website that is compatible with multiple devices. Also, it is crucial to check if the pages of the site render well in multiple browsers.
- During this step, the speed of the site is also tested. The specialists check the load time of the pages, according to their size. The speed of the site should be improved according to the recommendations of Google, because it has a major role in the ranking the website receives. There are websites that offer online user testing, and their results are quite effective, so if you have just developed your website it would be a smart thing to have it checked. And because you can do it online, you do not have to wait too long for the results.
The success of the website is reflected by its SEO features
- Sometimes companies are using PPC campaigns to improve the results of their SEO campaigns. If the website is redesigned or updated, it is important the PPC campaign to be paused until the new URL functions. Also, the URLs have to be checked manually, to see if the PPC campaign links to the right pages.
- At present, it is essential for all company websites to include social media icons. But more importantly is the icons to work and to lead to the right pages. The testers check if the buttons function according to the purpose, they were designed. For example, some companies prefer to use the Facebook icon to ask the user if they want to like their page on social media. But a common issue is that the button shares the page instead of directing the user to the Like option.
- When creating a website it is important all pages to have the right title tag, and it should be unique. Also all pages should have a Meta description, because snippets from them are used as ranking factors. The testers make recommendations in case the title tags and Meta data do not meet the current trends.
- Sometimes companies decide to change the URL structure of their page, and the content from the old website has to be moved or repurposed to fit the structure of the new one. In this situation, it is essential to check if the old URLs are mapped to the new ones.
The pages should be easy to operate at any time
- Even if at the beginning the website functions flawlessly, sometimes, in time the pages do not behave as they once used to do it. This is why it is advisable to have the website monitored regularly.
- In addition, in case the server goes down, the company should rely on a backup system to recover the content and to restore the website as soon as possible. When the content is restored, testing is required to see if the website functions properly.
