Your website is often the first impression a customer gets, and most people decide whether to stay within seconds. The frustrating part: a bad website doesn't send you a complaint. People just leave and call someone else. Here are nine signs to check today, plus the fix for each.
1. It's hard to use on a phone
Open your site on your own phone. Do you have to pinch and zoom? Are buttons tiny or overlapping? Most local searches happen on mobile, and Google evaluates the mobile version of your site first. Fix: a responsive, mobile-first design with large tap targets and readable text without zooming.
2. It takes more than a few seconds to load
Huge uncompressed photos, auto-playing sliders and piles of plugins add up. Run your homepage through Google's free PageSpeed Insights and look at the mobile score. Fix: compressed modern image formats, lazy loading, and a lean build without unnecessary scripts.
3. The browser says “Not secure”
If your address starts with http:// instead of https://, browsers warn visitors, and anyone filling out your contact form sees it. Fix: an SSL certificate. Most modern hosts include one free.
4. Visitors can't tell what you do in five seconds
A homepage that opens with “Welcome to our website!” wastes your most valuable space. Fix: a headline that says exactly what you do and where, like “Family dentistry in Ankeny, accepting new patients”, plus one clear next step.
5. There's no obvious way to contact you
Your phone number should be tappable, your contact page one click away, and your main call to action visible without scrolling. Fix: click-to-call, a short form, and a repeated call to action on every page.
6. The information is out of date
Old hours, discontinued services, a 2019 copyright year, or a “coming soon” page that never came: each one makes visitors wonder if you're still open. Fix: a site that's easy to update, or a care plan where someone updates it for you.
7. You don't show up when people search for what you do
Search your main service plus your city in a private browser window. If you're nowhere on the first page or the map results, customers are finding competitors first. Fix: local SEO fundamentals: a complete Google Business Profile, pages for each service, accurate business info, and on-page optimization.
8. It looks like it's from another decade
Design trends aren't everything, but a visibly dated site signals “this business might not be keeping up either.” Fix: a clean, modern design with real photos of your work and team.
9. You have no idea if it's working
If you don't know how many people visit or contact you through your site, you can't improve it. Fix: free tools like Google Analytics and Google Search Console, set up properly, with a simple monthly check-in.
What to do next
If you recognized three or more of these, your website is likely costing you business. The good news: every one of these is fixable, and most can be fixed at once with a well-planned redesign.