Why are we talking about website infrastructure? Website infrastructure is akin to an architect laying out the blueprints for a building or home.

While the fun part of designing is putting together colors, textures and visuals, a well-thought-out blueprint for your website creates the foundation and dictates the flow and framework for a successful environment “inside” the website. Website infrastructure impacts SEO, marketing objectives and, perhaps most importantly, the customer experience. 

To illustrate the importance of a well-functioning, clearly communicated website infrastructure, let’s look at some stats:

• Website users spend an average of 6.44 seconds focused on the main navigation menu.
• 88% of online users won’t return to a site after a bad experience. (Read on to find out why this has a compound effect in some industries.) 
• Some of the top ranking factors with Google are related to site speed and mobile performance.

(Source: Forbes)

Scalability 

Can your website handle growth? Website infrastructure should incorporate your business objectives, both current and future. Best practices include using scalable hosting solutions like cloud services that allow you to adjust resources as needed. Implementing load balancers to distribute traffic evenly across servers can also prevent any single server from becoming a bottleneck, maintaining optimal performance as demand increases. 

Make sure your themes and plug-ins stay up to date. Web developers should be updating themes regularly so that all of the technology works well together – which leads to the next thing…

Security

Cybersecurity is a continuous and growing concern for businesses. As threats become more sophisticated, it is crucial to stay up to date on trends and protect the data collected from clients and customers. Implementing strong, regularly updated security protocols such as HTTPS, data encryption, and secure socket layers (SSL). Regular security audits and vulnerability assessments can help identify and mitigate against potential threats. 

Monitoring and Analytics

Monitoring your website’s infrastructure helps detect and resolve issues before they impact users and business goals. Implementing real-time analytics and performance monitoring tools can provide insights into traffic patterns, page load times and error rates. This data is crucial for optimizing website performance and improving user experiences.

Backup and Recovery

Regular backups are essential to swiftly recover from data loss or cyber-attacks. Sound web infrastructure should include automating backups to occur at frequent intervals and storing them in multiple, secure locations. Ensure your recovery process is tested regularly to confirm that data can be quickly restored without significant downtime or loss.

User Experience

THIS! Perhaps we should have put this at the top of the list, but we intentionally wanted to talk about some of the technical side first.

Prioritizing user experience, which marketers often simply refer to as UX or CX, leads to higher engagement, conversion rates and retention. Best practices involve designing intuitive navigation, fast load times, and mobile-friendly layouts. Regular user testing and feedback can help refine UX. Clear calls to action and minimalistic design can also enhance the overall user experience, making your site more appealing and easy to use. User testing or Quality Assurance strategies can help identify places where the site may be failing the user.

As we mentioned, 88% of online users won’t return to a site after a bad experience. This has a compound affect when your business is relational vs. transactional.

Many of the companies that JAM works with have long sales cycles and low search volumes. Every opportunity to show that you are authority in a subject matter and have a company culture that aligns with your potential customer makes a difference.

You need to double down on making sure your website is a true representative of your business. You probably spend a lot of time find a quality Business Development professional to rep your company asking yourself : Do they dress well? Are they well-spoken? Do they have the right image? Your website is your virtual BD. Don’t short-cut this! 

SEO Optimization

SEO is vital for ensuring your website is discoverable. Website infrastructure often doesn’t take into account the SEO channel. Technical SEO goes way beyond keywords (although URL structure, image titles and metadata inserted into the code matter). Google also examines site speed, mobile performance and issues like broken links or malfunctioning elements of the site.

SEO did not come at the top of the list for a reason. At Awve Marketing, we have learned a lot about SEO, particularly how it relates to the niche industries we work with. It’s not what you think! Be sure you are paying attention, but also make sure you are balancing your budget in this particular marketing tactic.

Auto-renew Payments

This one seems obvious, but losing your intellectual property can and does happen. Implementing auto-renewal for your URLs is imperative. Imagine losing your company’s web address because you didn’t pay to renew. You should be receiving notices but that can only happen if your contact information is up to date. Best practices require up-to-date contact information and payment details regarding renewal terms and any related communication. Keep a list of your intellectual property and check it annually, just to be sure. 

Housekeeping

Regular website housekeeping involves removing unused files, optimizing databases and archiving old content. This practice helps maintain the website’s efficiency by reducing load times and improving server performance. Regular audits to identify and fix broken links, outdated information, and redundant content can also enhance user experience and SEO performance.

Maintaining a robust and strategic website infrastructure ensures a seamless user experience, optimizes performance, and safeguards customer data. You can create a resilient and efficient online environment by implementing best practices such as scalability, security, regular backups, and continuous monitoring.  

Additionally, staying up-to-date with technology, facilitating auto-renewal payments, and conducting regular website housekeeping is essential for keeping your platform relevant and reliable. Remember, a well-maintained website enhances user satisfaction and strengthens your brand’s online presence and operational capabilities. When it comes to housekeeping, we also pay attention to re-purposing content. Through proactive management and adherence to these best practices, your website can thrive in an ever-evolving digital landscape.

Jackie Awve Marketing & Design specializes in helping businesses create marketing initiatives that drive results. Our industry experience includes commercial real estate, retail properties, executive suites, trade associations, contractors and agency consulting.

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• The Dance Between Tools & Skills