Future Proofing your website

Your shiny new website has just been launched and everyone is happy. However, if over time, your website is not continuously updated, problems will occur. It is important to ensure your website is future proofed, so it continues to function as intended.

What happens when your site is not future proofed?

Many websites are built and then forgotten about. In the long run this can be bad for business. If your website is not updated, it may not work correctly on new browsers, devices and changes in coding practice. For example; if you still have a website that uses Adobe Flash, it can’t be viewed on iMacs, iPhones and iPads, as Apple stopped supporting Flash in 2010. Another example would be if you have a fixed width website, it can’t adapt to smaller devices such as mobiles, which is not good when more and more people are using smartphones to view websites.

So how do you future proof a website?

To future proof a website, it needs to be continuously updated, to accommodate never ending changes to browsers, devices and visitor behaviour. If you have a custom coded website, this could get expensive, as you would need to pay a developer to make the necessary changes. However, if you use a WordPress theme, like we do, the developers are constantly updating, so the millions of sites round the world that use the theme continue to work perfectly. If they didn’t, the theme would quickly be discarded and the developers would lose lots of money. It’s in the theme developer’s interest to make sure it adapts to changes in the online world.

What WordPress theme do you use?

We use a WordPress theme called Enfold by Kriesi. The developers of Enfold are continuously updating and improving the theme. They employ a large team who rigorously test the theme on all browsers (including: IE, Safari, Firefox, Chrome & Brave) and all platforms (including: Windows, IOS, MacOS, Android & Linux) and all devices (including: laptop, desktop, mobile & tablet).

We have been using the Enfold theme fo years over this time, we have seen many changes, all of which have been professionally dealt with by the team at Kriesi. For example, recent updates have focused on accommodating GDPR compliance, which is now a big issue, especially in Europe. This has made our job easier and saves you money. It has enabled us to quickly implement GDPR notices into your website and saves us having to pay and bill you to add a third party alternative.

What about plugins?

Another good reason to use WordPress as a platform for building your website with, is the use of plugins. Like themes, plugins are individual bits of software that are built and maintained by developers. Again, it is in their interest to keep their plugins updated otherwise, they will get bad reviews and no one will buy them. We make sure to only use plugins (plugins we use) from reputable developers who have a good track record and are continuously updating.

And search engines?

Another area we focus on, are changes to search engine algorithms. Google continuously changes how it ranks websites. Every time there is a big change, it’s important to digest and then adapt your website and internet marketing strategies accordingly. For example, in the last big update, called Bert, Google announced it was making voice search a bigger priority. Now,  if you want to get found, you need to make your website easier for voice searches. We keep updated with google changes, in order to keep you moving in the right direction!

In order to ensure your website and the online side of your business are future proofed, we’d recommend you use our Hosting, Maintenance and Support package. In addition to super fast hosting, we take care of updating the Enfold, theme, plugins and any other bits n’ bobs necessary to keep your site uptodate and working perfectly on any browser, device or platform.