Website audits are just one of the many consultancy services I provide, but what is a website audit and how does it help your business grow? Today, we’ll explore what a website audit entails. Plus, its benefits to your business. Read on to find out more.
Purpose of a Website Audit
Other freelance marketing consultants and agencies will have their own ways of performing an audit and have different names for them. Some perform website audits as an SEO audit, while others, it’s a content audit. I provide these services separately, and my website audit encompasses more technical and security reviews than content and strategy. From my perspective, the primary purpose of a website audit is to review the health of your website. Security issues can lead you open to an attack. Poor configuration and an overreliance on plugins can cause slow speeds. Poor management of services and admin areas can cause staff headaches years down the line.
What’s in a Website Audit?
The SEO Audits I perform for WordPress websites ensure all the different elements of a website work together in terms of security, functionality and design. It includes a review of what parts of the site need updating, where conflicts lie and what alternatives can be implemented. Where possible, any issues identified by the audit will be rectified. In many cases, you can see dramatic speed improvements. Plus, staff find a site easier to manage and maintain going forward.
Security
Probably the most vital thing to check on a website is its security. Unfortunately, the internet is rampant with criminal activity, and your website can easily be a target. Safety is paramount if you’re selling online at the highest possible level. This will protect your customers, your sales, and the legal standing of your business. If you do not adequately secure your business website, you risk legal action and hefty fines., especially if you make payments. But, even if your site is purely a brochure website, it can still be attacked by hackers. They may be looking to extract money directly from your business by holding your website to ransom. Or they may use your website as a jumping point to attack another website—all the more reason to secure your site.
What I do
As part of the security portion of your site audit, I review;
- SSL certificates and mixed content issues.
- Investigate common areas prone to attacks and bring them up to standard.
- Review security settings and install plugins that aid robust security.
- Examining file permissions and backup protocols.
- Review forms and implement spam protection.
Framework
Another critical aspect of keeping a website safe is ensuring your website’s framework is up to date. A framework is a software framework that is designed to support the development of web applications such as websites. WordPress, Shopify, X-cart, Squarespace etc., are all examples of frameworks. If a website is not up to date, it can also lead to hacking attempts. This is because the developers of these frameworks are constantly updating them in line with best practices. While hackers, on the other hand, consistently try to find loopholes and vulnerabilities. It’s a never-ending race, so keeping frameworks up to date is vital for security. Furthermore, by updating your framework, your site will continue to work in functionality and design, not to mention speed—developer updates as just as much about improving sites for users as they are about security.
What I Do
As part of a framework review, I look at the most simple of things; are your framework files up to date? If they are not, then this is a priority. But hold your horses; you shouldn’t just update a framework just because you get a notification to do so. In some cases, it can break your site. I, therefore, review whether the time is right for you to update the framework, and there are several factors that go into making that decision.
- How out of date is the existing site. If you make a jump from one update to a very modern one, you could break your site altogether.
- Is your hosting able to handle the update? For WordPress sites, you need to ensure your website hosting is using the correct PHP version. Once again, if not, it could break your site if you try to update.
- Will there be a conflict with your theme? Maybe your theme has not been tested with the latest version.
- Finally, will there be a conflict with plugins? In some cases, it may be vital to hold off on a framework update until an essential plugin updates to the latest version.
Plugins/Extensions
This moves nicely onto plugins and extensions. Plugins are software additions that allow for the customisation of your website. Extensions can change functionality, design or even administrative aspects. They carry the same issues when outdated as a framework that has not been updated to the latest version. They pose a security risk, design and functionality bugs and can cause slow speeds when too many are used or the wrong kind.
What I do
These are the aspects I review in my website audits when evaluating plugins.
- Are they out of date? And will the latest version be compatible with the current framework/theme?
- Does the website have duplicate or redundant plugins that can be removed?
- Is there a better plugin to exchange one for? One that has better features, faster loading or can improve functionality or design?
Legal
As stated in the security section, it’s a website owner’s responsibility to abide by the law and regulations on the website. Just because a website is digital doesn’t make it any less important than a ‘physical’ asset. Security is one way you must ensure legality, but there are also other data regulations and sales compliance that you must adhere to as a business. Protecting your business, staff, and customers is essential in the 21st century.
What I do
As part of a compliance review of your website, I will look at these areas.
- PCI DSS and distance selling regulations. If you sell online, you must comply with these laws. For your website, that means it needs to be secure, payments are taken correctly, and your terms and conditions are adequate and accessible.
- The guide covers the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) and the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR). All websites utilise cookies to learn about their users or provide certain functionality. Your website must comply with cookie and privacy policies laid out by the ICO.
Admin
I also perform admin tasks by reviewing and organising the different components of a site to ensure easy access, better working practices and reducing load times for both staff and customers. When a site is overly complicated in the backend, it dissuades staff from updating and maintaining the site. Creating more accessible systems helps keep your online presence fresh and frequent while not being a painful task for staff. Certain updates are also vital to ensure the continued security of your site and business as a whole.
What I do
The admin areas I review and rectify include;
- Reviewing the backend layout of the site and offering suggestions on better layout and organisation. The plugin review is part of this, as fewer plugins mean less maintenance.
- Checking who has access to a site and discussing with clients whether each person needs this continued access or they should be removed. For old sites, you can find a multitude of old accounts from developers, marketers, third-party support and ex-employees. Website access should always be kept to a minimum and always available to the owners of the site.
Benefits of a Website Audit
As you can see, a lot goes into a website audit. Here are the main benefits of getting an audit, plus when is the right time to get one.
- Protect you and your customers from hackers. Security is the biggest reason you should have an adequate website audit undertaken. Behind the scenes, good security keeps hackers out. Front of house, good security showcases trust to your customers.
- Ensure you are complying with laws. If you are not fully aware of the laws surrounding websites, an audit can highlight areas that need to be bolstered. These laws and regulations are in place to protect your business, its customers and your employees.
- Improve site speed. One significant benefit to your website users is that many of these modifications can increase the speed of your site. For example, a faster loading website is more likely to keep users for longer. Longer enough to make that sale.
When to do a website audit
So, when is the right time to get an audit? Websites need maintenance constantly, so ideally, your site would be reviewed every month to ensure compliance. However, there are key times when an audit is usually undertaken;
- You’ve never had, or not recently, an audit? As a result, you don’t know how your site performs regarding security and updates.
- You are starting a new marketing strategy or digital campaign. Your website is your storefront for the digital world; if you’re ready to ramp up your marketing, ensure your website is the best.
- You’ve had a change of website management or staff turnover. The old person who was in charge of the website is gone. This is the time to review your site and ensure that you put your best foot first in the future.
- Your site is ancient, and you have a lot on it. Old websites can get very complicated. Over the years, staff, developers and designs can add to them without thinking of the long term consequences. If you feel your site is bloated and needs to slim down, this is a good time for an audit.
Book a Site Audit with Middleton Marketing
If you believe your outdated site may be ruining your chances of gaining leads or making sales, now’s the time for a website audit. I provide a website audit as a one-off service, you can either have just the review part and report, or I can implement the changes required. If you choose for a report only, you are free to take this to another website developer to implement the changes. There is no obligation to work further after consultancy. I also provide SEO audits and content audits, which can be combined with a website audit. I offer a bundle deal for two or more audits. Get in touch if you’d like to learn more.