It is time to redesign your website when it is between 2 and 3 years old and it no longer supports how your business works today.
If your site feels outdated, slow, hard to update, confusing for visitors, or no longer brings inquiries, then it is not doing its job anymore.
A website is not something you build once and forget.
It should grow as your business grows.
Every 2 to 3 years, you should pause, review it honestly, and decide if it still deserves to represent your brand.
Now let us break down how to evaluate your website properly instead of redesigning based on feelings or trends.
Technology, user behavior, and search engines change fast.
What worked three years ago may still look fine, but underneath, it is often weak.
Mobile habits change. Google updates its rules. Design patterns evolve. Your business goals shift. You add new services. You target better clients.
Most business websites in Cameroon and beyond fail not because they look ugly, but because they are outdated in thinking. They were built for an old version of the business.
That is why redesigning every 2 to 3 years is not wasteful. It is maintenance. Just like repainting a shop or servicing a car.
To make this decision clear, use this checklist.
I call this the REAL Checklist because it focuses on what actually matters.
REAL stands for Relevance, Experience, Authority, and Leads.
Let us go through each one.
Ask yourself one hard question. Does this website still represent who we are today?
Most websites fail here.
Your services may have changed, but the site still talks about old offers.
Your target customers may be different, but the language still speaks to everyone.
Your business may have grown, but the website still feels small.
Signs you fail the relevance check:
You avoid sharing your website link
Your homepage message feels generic
New customers misunderstand what you actually do
Your competitors sound clearer than you
If your website no longer matches your current direction, it is time for a redesign.
This is about how people feel when using your site.
Do not ask if it looks good. Ask if it feels easy.
Experience includes speed, navigation, mobile use, and clarity.
Signs you fail the experience check:
The site loads slowly on phones
Visitors get lost clicking too many pages
Important information is hard to find
Forms are long or broken
People ask questions that the site should already answer
A modern website should feel simple, fast, and obvious. If users struggle, they leave. No matter how beautiful the design is.
If your website frustrates users, it is already costing you money.
Your website should make people trust you before they contact you.
Most websites talk about themselves too much and prove nothing.
Authority is built through clarity, proof, and structure.
Signs you fail the authority check:
No testimonials or real results
No clear story of who you help
Weak About page
No photos, case studies, or real examples
It feels like anyone could have built this site
Today, people judge your credibility in seconds. If your website does not quietly say “these people know what they are doing,” you lose trust.
A redesign helps reposition you as serious, established, and confident.
This is the most painful one.
Is your website actually bringing inquiries, calls, messages, or bookings?
Not likes. Not compliments. Real leads.
Signs you fail the leads check:
Traffic but no messages
People say “I saw your site” but never contact you
Contact page exists but feels ignored
No clear call to action
The site does not guide visitors to take the next step
A website is not art. It is a tool.
If it does not help people take action, it is broken, even if it looks fine.
When a redesign is done right, leads increase not because of magic, but because the message becomes clearer and the path becomes easier.
Most people redesign for the wrong reason. They want a new look.
That is lazy thinking.
A proper redesign is about fixing gaps. Gaps in clarity. Gaps in trust. Gaps in user flow. Gaps in results.
Before redesigning, you do not ask “what colors should we use?”
You ask:
What is confusing people?
What is slowing them down?
What is stopping them from trusting us?
What is stopping them from contacting us?
When you redesign with answers to these questions, the website starts working again.
