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Refresh Your Website in 15 Minutes

Pauline Wiles

You're busy. You're juggling a hundred things each day, and this is the time of year when the pressure tends to build slowly but surely.

You don't want to spend hours - or days - updating your website

However, if you sell books, digital products, or services - especially those of a "giftable" nature, you should anticipate increased traffic to your website in the next few weeks.

People may be shopping for gifts and will want to check you out, or maybe they read one of your books/articles during a restful moment and want to know more. Even if what you sell isn't especially gift-worthy, recognize that as soon as the main Christmas/Hanukkah/other celebration is over, a potential buyer's thoughts will turn to projects, needs or resolutions they've been delaying.

So what can you do, then, to spruce up your website and be ready, without undertaking a major overhaul?

These 9 website updates each take 15 minutes or less

If you can find an hour to work on your website, you can take care of several. Pick the ones you suspect are dragging down the effectiveness of your site the most.

  • Update your bio, especially if you have outdated information like the age of your kids or dog. A surprising proportion of website visitors will click on your About page. Avoid the mistake I made when I released my first novel, of stating that I moved to California 8 years ago. It's amazing how fast 8 becomes 17!

  • Make sure all your published books (products, or services) have Buy links or, ideally, buttons. Many visitors use mobile devices so the bigger and bolder you make these, the better.

  • Check for broken links. Keeping up with external links is tough, but within your site, links must work if you're to come across as professional. One tool I like (it’s free) is Dead Link Checker.

  • Remove clutter. Your sidebar is especially likely to contain ugly, distracting or outdated rubbish. For every element on your website, ask yourself if it adds true value to your visitor's experience. If not, get rid of it. (A project for later could be to remove your sidebar altogether.)

  • Remove links to any social media accounts you no longer use, or, even worse, places like Google Plus (which no longer exists). The same applies if the social media in question doesn't "sing the same song" as your website. For example, if you write light fiction but tend to tweet about politics, don't connect the two.

  • Test your contact form, and ideally ask a friend to submit their information too. Make sure everything comes through as expected. Incidentally, I'm not a fan of contact forms. Unless you desperately need anonymity or write on sensitive topics, give your visitors the ability to reach you directly.

  • Swap sites with a friend and check for spelling errors. You'd be amazed what creeps in! If you find any on this site (except for British/American spelling variations which are abundant): let me know & I'll send you a thank you gift!

  • Check whether your blog is showing the date of your last article, and if so, make sure you have something posted within the last 4 weeks. At a minimum, just mention the upcoming gift-giving season and suggest your book/service as a gift. And if you never know what to blog about, consider investing in my done-for-you content calendar. Or, maybe it’s time to stop blogging altogether. Here are 8 things you could do instead.

  • Visit every main page and skim read for out of date content or other cobwebs. Things change fast, and your website visitor deserves accurate information.

This is the perfect time of year to give your website a little care and attention. Any of these tasks would be a great use of 15 minutes. Let me know which you decide to do!

Does your website need more help than this?