The Team at Scruffymonkey will always tell you that a website is never finished – it just goes live.

As a copywriter, I’ll always back that sentiment, because any and all parts of your marketing – with your website being a massive part of that – are only ever going to be working effectively for you if they’re current, accurate, and relevant to the people you’re hoping to do business with.

I’m forever telling my clients to update their content on their websites so that they know exactly what their potential clients are being greeted with every time they log on, because generally, most people can’t actually tell you what’s written on their Home Page – never mind anywhere else.

Do you know what’s on yours? And the other pages, too?

You may be thinking that this isn’t important, as you’re never likely to be tested on it, are you? But think about what you might be asked about it if someone’s recently visited your website and wants to take the next step in the customer journey.

What if you have no idea what they’re talking about?

What if they’re calling to ask about something that you don’t – or can’t – offer anymore?

What if it all gets a bit awkward and you end up looking less than professional?

Have you ever been on the end of that conversation with a business, where you call up/email them – so keen to buy – but they come back to tell you that ‘the information is out of date’…?

It’s more than a disappointment for the client, and it’s not a great look for the business, is it?

Keep your content up to date, guys, but just as importantly (and the main point of this blog), keep your website as a whole up to date, too, because it’s the first thing people will look for and look at when scoping out who you are, what you do, and how you do it!

Whether you had your website initially designed and built by Scruffymonkey is irrelevant, as they can either start work with you from scratch, or can work on a website that you already have up and running. If you’re on one of their web support plans (and for your online peace of mind, why wouldn’t you be?), then you’re also covered by any updates and fixes that will make the visibility and functionality of your website spot-on when it comes to doing the job you always hoped it would do.

Sometimes, though, you need to go a step further, and that’s where Scruffymonkey have been a dream to work with for me over the past few months in particular.

I’m not going to say I had some kind of almighty breakdown (although I’d never rule it out), but I just got to the point with my website where it just didn’t feel or look right anymore in terms of my brand.

• I was advertising products and merchandise, but there was no simple way for customers to easily, instantly or securely buy from me.
• I had pages of content that I’d added over the years that basically duplicated other pages of content somewhere else on the site, and it just felt like it might get confusing.
• The words, the images, the layout… none of it felt like ‘me’ anymore.

Now, that last point was all on me. As the business owner, it’s my responsibility to find the words, share the messages, and tell the stories. As a professional copywriter, that’s even more on my own head, but that’s not the focus of this blog. Those first two points of issue… neither of those things could be sorted by me buggering about in the back end for a bit. (Chris and Lin assure me that’s a technical term). I needed a web designer to get stuck in there to re-design and, if necessary, re-build.

The result? What I have now is a site that not only gives the information I want and need to present to my potential clients (‘well done me’ for the expert copywriting), but I have a site that shows I take my business seriously through having invested in creating something that’s as functional as it is beautiful, and something that puts user experience ahead of my own ego.

So, my advice to you as you click through your existing website is this. Keep your messaging up to date, keep your images on brand, and keep your website in the hands of someone who’ll tell you what you need to be doing in order to make your online presence not just a pretty face, but a pretty damn good space for you to do business, too.

Check out Scruffymonkey’s great work – and mine – here at www.agoodwriteup.com