Hey there. Your site’s looking a little, um, flabby. It’s out of shape. No, I don’t mean anything by it. I’m just sayin’…
More Than A Metaphor
Seriously, it’s something to look at. Websites need regular care and, well, exercise. Your website should be fit, and you’re the personal trainer.
Because, let’s face it- if you feed your site junk, and it gets all bloated, and you don’t help maintain it, the site can’t run properly. People will stop hanging out with it. It’s your website’s version of depression. No social interaction. No friends.
Change Your Diet
First, look at what you’re feeding your site. Is your content full of fat? Is it a lot of filler around just a few lean nuggets of good info?
Time to unclog the arteries. Spread that information out. It’s actually fun to write about what’s relevant, and write it in a way people can understand it. An earlier post about making your site easier to read is one place to start.
(And honestly, candy is o.k. once in a while, too. But not too much, alright?)
Get Some Exercise
There are some simple ways you can get your site out and around, and back into shape. For starters, you can make sure your site is registered with some website directories (directories are just indexes that can help your site get seen by more people). There are big directories at Yahoo! and DMOZ.
Then (and this goes back to content), show the world that you like to play with others by building links from other sites to yours. There are tons of different ways to do that. One good one is to participate in discussions about subjects that have to do with your business.
That’s right- get out there! Participate. Let people know that you’re an authority in your field (nicely, by providing good info.) Ahhh! Feels good, no?
Get Regular Checkups
Unless you build websites and write content for your job, you need help. If you really want to make your online tools work for you, go to the doctor (read: your web developer).
Developers do all kinds of things that go far past the building stage. Regular maintenance is a must if you want a healthy website.
So, ask yourself: Is your website out of shape? If so, I hope you’ve found some ideas here that you can use to get it back into top physical form.
*Image by Norma Desmond via Flickr
