The quiet stretch between Christmas and the first proper week of January is one of my favourite times of year for website jobs. The phone is quieter, the inbox slows down, and there’s finally a bit of headspace to look at your site with fresh eyes.
A New Year website audit doesn’t need to be a huge project. You don’t need special software or a technical background. You just need an afternoon, a cup of tea, and a willingness to be honest about what’s working and what isn’t. Here’s the checklist I’d work through if it were my own business.
Look Back at How Your Website Did This Year
Before changing anything, take ten minutes to see what actually happened over the last twelve months. If you have Google Search Console set up, the Performance report shows which searches brought people to your site, which pages they landed on, and how often you appeared in results.
A few things worth noting down:
- Your top five pages by clicks. These are doing the heavy lifting, so they deserve the most attention.
- Searches where you appear a lot but rarely get clicked. A clearer page title or description could turn those into visitors.
- Pages that used to perform and have dropped off. They might just need a refresh.
You’re not looking for perfection here, just a rough picture of where your effort will pay off.
Check the Basics Still Make Sense
It’s surprising how often small details go out of date without anyone noticing. Click through your site as if you were a brand new customer and check:
- Opening hours, including any changes for the new year.
- Phone numbers, email addresses and your physical address.
- Prices, packages and service descriptions.
- Staff names and photos, if you show your team.
- The copyright year in your footer. It’s a tiny thing, but “© 2024” quietly suggests nobody’s minding the shop.
If you updated your site for Christmas trading, now is also the time to take down festive banners, last order dates and seasonal offers that have now ended.
Test Your Forms and Contact Points
This one matters more than almost anything else on the list. A beautiful website with a broken contact form is losing you enquiries every single day.
Fill in every form on your site and make sure the message actually arrives in your inbox (and not your spam folder). Click your phone number on a mobile to check it dials. Try any booking links or calendar tools. If you use a live chat or WhatsApp button, send yourself a test message.
While you’re there, have a look at the buttons that lead people to get in touch. If they’re vague or hard to spot, my post on improving your website call to actions has some easy fixes.
Tidy Up Behind the Scenes
If your site runs on WordPress, log in and have a look at what’s waiting for you:
- Update WordPress, your theme and your plugins (take a backup first).
- Delete plugins you’re no longer using. Each one is something else to maintain.
- Check your backups are actually running and that you know where they’re stored.
- Make sure your SSL certificate is valid, so visitors see the padlock in their browser.
This is the unglamorous side of running a website, but it’s what keeps your site secure and fast all year.
Refresh Your Google Business Profile
For local businesses, your Google Business Profile is often seen before your website. Update your hours, add a few new photos from the past year, and reply to any reviews you haven’t got round to. If local search is a big part of how customers find you, my guide to getting found locally goes into more detail.
Set One or Two Website Goals for the Year
Finally, think about what you’d like your website to do better this year. Keep it realistic. Maybe it’s writing one blog post a month, adding a proper reviews section, or finally getting your service pages to answer the questions customers always ask you on the phone.
Write those goals down somewhere you’ll see them. A website that gets a little attention every month will always outperform one that gets a big overhaul every five years.
If you’d like a lighter version of this to repeat mid year, my summer website check-up is a good companion to this list.
Need a Second Pair of Eyes?
Most of this checklist is something you can absolutely do yourself, and I’d encourage you to give it a go. You know your business better than anyone.
But if you get stuck, or you’d just like someone to look over your site and talk through what you’ve found, I offer a free 30 minute brainstorming session. There’s no pressure and no hard sell, just a friendly chat about your website and where it could go this year. If you then decide you’d like a hand with updates, SEO or a refresh, I’m happy to help.
Book your free brainstorming session here, or get in touch at hello@chellwebdesign.com or 07725 721492.
Here’s to a great year for your business, and a website that works as hard as you do.
