Launched your website? Here is how to look after it

Keep the facts current

Opening hours, service areas, prices and team details go out of date quickly. Check them every few months so visitors never find wrong information.

A facts checklist

Set a reminder in your phone for the first day of every third month, and go through this list on the live site.

• Opening hours, including public holidays and any December closing dates.
• Phone numbers, WhatsApp number and email address.
• Physical address, directions and parking information.
• Areas you serve. If you have added or dropped a suburb, change it.
• Prices, "from" amounts and callout fees.
• Names and photos of staff, especially when someone has left or joined.
• Qualifications, registrations and medical aid or payment information.

Examples from different trades

A clinic should update its practitioner list and the medical aids it accepts whenever they change. A church should keep service times, event dates and the contact for the office correct, because newcomers rely on them. A plumber who has stopped working after hours should say so, otherwise people will call at night and be frustrated.

Worked scenario

A building company moved its office but kept the old address on the contact page for almost a year. Clients arrived at the wrong place and some stopped trying. A five-minute check every quarter would have caught it. Wrong facts do more harm than missing ones, because they cost trust.

Test your enquiry form

Send yourself a test message now and then. A broken form quietly costs you customers, and you may never know it happened.

How to run a proper test

• Fill in the form on your phone, using a different email address from the one that receives the messages.
• Confirm that the message arrives in the right inbox, and check the spam folder as well.
• Check that the visitor sees a clear thank-you message afterwards.
• Click your phone number and WhatsApp links to make sure they open the right app and number.
• Try the form on a computer too, in case it behaves differently.

Do this once a month, and always after you or anyone else changes something on the site.

What to do if it fails

If a test message does not arrive, do not wait. Contact whoever looks after your site straight away, and in the meantime put your phone number and email address in a visible place on the page. Think back to when you last received an enquiry. If there has been a long quiet spell, the form may have been broken for a while.

Watch the basics that matter

Look at which pages people visit and where they leave. You do not need complicated reports. A simple view of visits and enquiries tells you what to improve next.

Three numbers to track

• How many people visit the site each month.
• Which pages they visit most.
• How many enquiries you receive, by form, call and WhatsApp.

Write these in a notebook or simple spreadsheet each month. After a few months, you can see whether the site is growing and which changes helped.

Ask your customers

The best measure is often the simplest. When someone calls, ask how they found you. Keep a tally of answers such as Google, a referral, Facebook or a friend. This tells you what is working, even where the visit numbers are unclear.

Worked scenario

An electrician noticed that his page about solar and backup power received many visits, while the page on general electrical repairs received few. He added a clear quote button and some project photos to the busy page, and wrote a short intro for the quieter one. He made decisions from two simple numbers rather than a complicated report.

Add something new regularly

A new project photo, a recent review or a helpful article shows the business is active and gives search engines a reason to return.

Easy ideas for fresh content

• A photo of your latest finished job, with a sentence about what was done and where.
• A new review, with the customer's permission.
• A short note on a seasonal issue: gutters before the rains, geysers in winter, garden watering rules.
• An announcement of new services or new staff.
• For churches, upcoming events, a short message summary or a new group starting.
• For clinics, a plain-language answer to a question patients often ask.

Keep the pace realistic

One small update a month is better than ten in January and nothing afterwards. Decide what you can keep up with, and put it in your calendar.

Keep the site safe and running

A website sits on a server and uses software that needs updating. Neglect leaves it slow, broken or open to attack.

What needs looking after

• Hosting: the service that keeps the site online.
• SSL: the padlock that shows the connection is secure. If it expires, browsers show a warning and visitors leave.
• Software updates: security fixes that need applying.
• Backups: a recent copy of the site you can restore from if something goes wrong.
• Domain renewal: if the domain expires, you can lose your web address and email.

Questions to ask whoever manages your site

• Who is responsible for updates and backups, and how often are they done?
• How would I get my site back if something broke?
• When does my domain renew, and who gets the reminder?
• Who do I contact if the site goes down?

Get the answers in writing, and keep your login details somewhere safe, not only in one person's head.

Check the site on a phone

Most visitors will see your site on a phone. Once a quarter, open it on your own phone, and ideally on an older or smaller one too.

• Do pages load in a reasonable time on mobile data?
• Is the text readable without zooming?
• Can you press the buttons easily with a thumb?
• Do images look right and not stretched?

A simple maintenance routine

If you would like one plan to follow, this is a gentle schedule.

Monthly

• Send a test enquiry and check it arrives.
• Note the visit and enquiry numbers.
• Add one photo, review or short update.

Every three months

• Check opening hours, prices, areas and staff details.
• Open the site on your phone and read it as a customer would.
• Click every important link and button.

Once a year

• Confirm hosting, SSL and domain renewals are in order.
• Read every page, remove what is out of date and rewrite what no longer sounds like you.
• Ask whoever manages the site to confirm backups are working.

None of this takes long, and it protects the money you invested in the site. A small, regular effort keeps your website accurate and ready for the next customer.

When to ask for help

You do not have to do everything yourself. Some jobs are better handed to a professional, and knowing which ones saves time.

Do it yourself

• Changing opening hours, phone numbers and prices.
• Adding photos and reviews.
• Testing the form and links.
• Keeping a record of visits and enquiries.

Ask for help

• The site is slow, shows a security warning or will not load.
• The form stopped working and you cannot find the cause.
• You want a new page, a new service section or a change to the layout.
• You receive a strange message about your domain or hosting. Check it is real before paying anything.

Worked scenario

A painting contractor noticed a padlock warning on her site one Monday morning. She did not try to fix it herself. She phoned the company that looks after her site, and it was sorted the same day. Because she knew who to call, a problem that could have lasted weeks cost her only a few hours.

Keep a short log

Write down every change you make, with the date and a line about what you did. A simple list in a notebook is enough. When something stops working, you can look back and see what changed, and anyone who helps you later will understand the history of the site.

Plan for staff changes

When someone leaves the business, remove their access to the site, email and hosting accounts the same week. Update their details on the team page, and make sure the enquiry emails still go to someone who will read them.