Website Review
[February 2006] When did you create your website or last do a major overhaul? Chances are that quite a few months or even years have slipped by since the last time you really paid attention to what's on your website.
February is a good time of year to do a review of your site. Get it all up-to-date and in order for this new year of action. You don't need any special skills for a review, just the ability to use a web browser and make some notes.
Here's a checklist for you.
Contact details
- are they on your website?
- are they easy to find?
- are they accurate?
- do email links and contact forms still work?
News
If you have a News section:
- are the items listed still news or are they now "olds"?
- have things happened recently that have not been listed?
- should you move older items to a News archive?
Activities
If you have a section about your activities:
- are the activities still current?
- are contact details correct?
- are dates correct?
Newsletters
If you have a section for newsletters, meeting minutes etc:
- have the most recent materials been added?
- should older materials be put into archives by year?
- do the links contain information about size and format?
- is there a link to download Adobe Reader (if materials are in PDFformat)?
Resources
If you make books, videos, brochures or other resources available for loan or purchase:
- are items listed which are no longer available?
- are prices or loan conditions current?
- are new items available but not listed?
- are contact details correct?
- does the online order form work correctly?
- does the order form for download and printing work correctly?
Review date
It's a good idea to let visitors know you check and update your website regularly.
- do pages have a note of when they were last reviewed?
- do any pages show a review date older than 12 months ago?
Statistics
Check your statistics regularly.
- how many visitors did you have last year?
- which were the most popular pages?
- what search terms did they use?
- who links to you?
There are other things you could check on your website, but these are items you should check regularly. Print off a copy of the checklist and assign the task to a volunteer or paid worker. Add the review to your regular meeting agenda. We've made the checklist available as both a web page and a PDF. You can download a copy from the CommunityNet Aotearoa website: www.community.net.nz/How-ToGuides/IT/PublicationsResources/website-review.htm.