Your website is a few years old. It still works, but something is off: it looks dated, it reads badly on a phone, or it no longer says what you actually offer.
The right question is not always “should we redo everything?”. It is rather: what still works, and what is holding you back? Here is how to sort it out before spending.
The signs a simple update is no longer enough
An update fixes a piece of content or a page. It does not fix a site whose foundations no longer keep up. Four situations come up often:
- The site looks dated and no longer inspires trust: a visitor choosing between two businesses also judges by how the site looks.
- The site is hard to read on mobile: tiny text, buttons too close together, pages that overflow.
- Your offer has changed but the site has not: it still describes what you did several years ago.
- Nobody knows how to update it any more: the person who built it cannot be reached, or every small change becomes a headache.
If even one of these sounds familiar, an update may not be enough. If none does, it probably is.
When an update is enough
A site that is sound at heart but a little dated in the details does not need a redesign. An update is often enough when:
- it is a matter of fixing texts, opening hours, photos or contact details
- the structure of the site suits you and reads well on a phone
- you still know who can work on it, and how
- your offer has not changed in any deep way
In that case, small regular changes do the job. That is what website maintenance covers, from €99 a month. Before signing, see what a maintenance contract should include.
A redesign is not necessarily a site rebuilt from zero
The word is scary because it suggests everything gets thrown away. That is not how a well-run redesign works. You first look at what exists: what works is kept, the rest is modernised or rebuilt.
At Kayo, a website redesign starts from that review. The scope is set in the quote, once your current site has been examined. It includes the same elements as a new build (custom design, mobile-friendly site, basic technical SEO) within the agreed scope.
What to protect during a redesign
Redoing a site also means changing addresses. If nothing is planned, the old pages lead to an error, and both visitors and Google lose the trail.
- Your old addresses: a redirect plan links them to the new ones when the site goes live, so no page is left in error.
- Your useful content: the texts and photos to keep are supplied by you. What is missing is not recreated.
- Your visibility: a careful redesign protects it, but nobody can guarantee a position on Google, which depends on factors outside our control. It is an obligation of means.
Five questions to ask yourself before deciding
- Does my site inspire trust when I look at it through a new customer’s eyes?
- Does it read well on my phone, with no zooming or hunting for the button?
- Does it describe the offer I sell today?
- Do I know who can change it, and how long that takes?
- What would I lose by starting from a blank page: pages that bring in visitors, valuable content?
How a redesign runs at Kayo
- A review of your current site, to see what works and what must be redone.
- A proposed scope and price, in a quote you approve.
- Mock-ups of the new design, approved by you before development.
- Development, then a test phase on a test environment, where you try the new site.
- Acceptance, then payment of the balance before the switch: nothing is published before that.
- The switch to the new site, with the planned redirects.
During the project, the old site stays as it is. Its possible flaws are not fixed in parallel: the effort goes into the new site.
What it costs
The price of a redesign depends on the agreed scope: it is on quote, after your site has been reviewed. Three things make it vary: the number of pages and features kept, the state of the current site and the options chosen.
The review of your current site is included at no charge if your site was built by Kayo and has not been changed since. For a site built by someone else, or changed since its delivery, it costs €125 and is not deducted from the quote. To put budgets in context, also read our guide on what a website costs in Belgium.
What you need to provide
- full access to the old site, the domain name, the hosting and the connected tools
- the content you want to keep
A site built by another provider can be taken over, once that access is in place and the existing site has been reviewed.
Where to start
If you are torn between redoing and updating, the first step is to look at what exists. For a redesign, that is what the review does. If you would rather start from a blank page, see website design.
The pre-audit is free and given orally during the 20-minute call: a first look at your site. You can also book a 20-minute call.
