9 Quick Wins To Improve a Newly Purchased Website

There are some affiliate links below, but they are all products I highly recommend. For more info, view my disclosure here.

Buying a new website can so exciting! A shiny, fresh website that’s ready for you to make your mark and turn it into a profitable site! However, transforming that purchase into a successful online business requires digging into the site, figuring out what’s working, what isn’t, and what quick wins will boost the site in the shortest amount of time. 

There are many impactful yet achievable quick wins you can implement during the initial phases of ownership to build momentum and start driving results faster. Let’s explore the best approaches and tactics for quickly improving a newly purchased website to boost traffic, revenue, and overall performance.

Assessing the Current Site Performance

When acquiring a new website, one of the most important first steps is thoroughly analyzing its current performance and health. This will uncover the strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities of your new site, guiding your optimization path.

Start by evaluating the website’s design and user experience to identify any areas that need improvement.

The website design plays a crucial role in attracting and engaging visitors. A visually appealing and user-friendly design can greatly enhance the overall user experience.

Pay attention to the layout, color scheme, and typography to ensure a cohesive and visually pleasing design. Implementing responsive design to ensure that the website is accessible and functional across different devices.

Closely examine the website’s traffic and engagement metrics using analytics tools like Google Analytics & Google Search Console. Evaluate the number of visitors and pageviews the site receives.

Look at bounce rate to gauge how well it retains visitors. If bounce rate is high, it indicates visitors are quickly leaving – a clue that engagement needs improvement.

Audit the technical performance and speed of the site using tools like Google PageSpeed Insights and GTMetrix to measure how fast the pages load. Slow load times frustrate users, hurting conversions and SEO (search engine optimization). Also check the site’s responsiveness on mobile devices.

With more than 56% of traffic now mobile, an unoptimized mobile phone experience severely limits reach. Optimize images and minimize HTTP requests to improve the page speed. Investing in a reliable hosting provider can also help to improve site speed.

Good user experience goes beyond just design and speed. Make sure that the website is easy to navigate and find information. Incorporate clear and intuitive navigation menus and include internal links to guide users to relevant content. This not only improves the user experience but also helps with SEO.

Dive into the site’s organic search performance. Review which keywords and topics are driving traffic from search engines. Check ratings like domain authority and backlink profile. Moz has a free Link Explorer that shows these stats and allows 10 free searches a month.

This reveals how visible and discoverable the site is in organic search. Low search engine visibility presents an opportunity for SEO enhancement.

Comb through historical analytics reports on traffic channels, conversions, and revenue. Look for changes and trends. This paints a fuller picture of the website’s overall health and performance trajectory, arming you with insights to inform strategy.

Conducting this thorough current state assessment identifies the website’s strong points and weak points, laying the foundation for an optimization plan targeting impactful quick wins. It provides invaluable context and understanding of your new asset.

Quick Win #1: Optimize On-Page SEO

One of the quickest ways to improve your newly purchased website is to optimize the on-page SEO of your existing content. This includes enhancing your page titles, meta descriptions, headings, image alt text, and overall technical optimization.

Start by updating your page titles to contain your target main keyword for each page while keeping them under 60 characters. The page title is critical for search engine rankings and clickthroughs.

If a page is performing well already, leave it alone for a bit. You don’t want to make too many changes too quickly while you’re still getting a handle on running the new site.

Next, expand your meta descriptions to 150-160 characters and focus them around your main keywords and any secondary keywords you want to target. Well-written meta descriptions that highlight your offerings can improve clickthrough rates.

Also take time to refine your headings, using your keywords where it makes sense but avoiding over-optimization. Headings create structure and hierarchy on your pages. Ensure they correctly outline the content on each page.

Add descriptive and keyword-optimized alt text to all images on your pages. The alt text provides search engines more signals into your content and can surface images in search. It’s important to accurately describe the image for site visitors using a screen reader.

Finally, technical website optimization is key. There are various ways to improve page load speeds, including compressing images, minifying CSS and JS files, using a content delivery network (CDN) for assets, and optimizing your database queries.

Faster load speeds equal better user experience and SEO. Test your improvements using Google PageSpeed Insights to benchmark your progress.

Tackling these essential on-page optimizations early on will give your newly acquired website a solid SEO boost. Take the time to optimize each page, focusing first on your most important pages and content. This will strengthen your website’s foundation and help you start ranking for key terms quicker.

Quick Win #2: Enhance User Experience and Navigation

Crafting an intuitive, seamless user experience is vital for engaging visitors and nurturing conversions on any website. Thoughtfully optimizing your site’s navigation and on-page elements can profoundly improve usability.

Begin by auditing your primary site navigation menu. Explore the site structure and make sure all menu and submenu items in a logical hierarchy that fits the content structure.

Group related pages together under clear categorical labels that avoid industry jargon. Write concise, descriptive menu titles that communicate what each page contains.

Consider incorporating dropdown submenus to house secondary pages rather than overloading the main navigation. Streamlined menus with clear architecture help visitors efficiently find pages relevant to their needs.

Next, examine how well your website guides users from page to page. Implement convenient navigation widgets like related posts sections, tagging, breadcrumb trails, and next/previous article links. These supplementary elements assist visitors in flowing naturally to other pages aligned with their interests. Use Microsoft Clarity to view heatmaps and recordings to see if users are getting hung up at certain navigation points and leaving.

Ensure calls-to-action stand out on the page through size, color, and placement. Guarantee they lead users to relevant content upon clicking rather than unrelated pages.

Taking the time to refine your website’s navigation, calls-to-action, and on-page journey will directly improve user experience. Visitors will more easily find and consume information, spending more time engaged with your brand.

Change all affiliate links on the site ASAP. Otherwise, you’re giving the seller free money!

Quick Win #3: Establish Social Media Accounts and Build a Content Calendar

If social media accounts are not yet set up for your newly acquired website, creating and activating profiles on key platforms should be a priority. Active social media establishes brand awareness and provides additional traffic sources.

Determine which social platforms make the most sense for your brand and offerings. Options include Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (X), LinkedIn and YouTube. Ensure accounts are created consistently with your brand name, logo and messaging.

Craft an initial post introducing your company’s ownership of the website to establish your social media presence. Develop a content calendar to plan regular posts that share articles, visual content, and engaging messages that followers will connect with.

Leverage tools like SmarterQueue to schedule upcoming content across your platforms. Interact by responding to follower questions and feedback.

Maintaining an active, strategic social media presence will amplify the visibility of your optimized website. Consistent high-value engagement grows your following and traffic over time.

Quick Win #4: Refresh and Optimize Existing Content

In addition to adding new content, refreshing your website’s existing content can generate quick wins. Start by identifying older articles or blog posts that receive decent traffic but could perform better.

Improve the content quality and readability wherever possible. Incorporate relevant keywords based on search volume and competitor content. Update any outdated details or broken links. Expand thin articles with more detail, stats, examples, and resources.

Boost the internal link structure by link building to other relevant pages or products on your site. Internal linking is a great way to help your readers find relevant content while also helping Google understand your content.

Include high-quality images, graphics and videos that make the content more engaging and shareable. Promote the refreshed content on social media.

Next optimize any drafted but unpublished content by completing and optimizing it to publish. Look for opportunities to break larger content into multiple posts for additional publishing opportunities. Updating and optimizing existing articles allows you to gain more traction from assets already on your site.

Quick Win #5: Implement Effective SEO Strategies

Optimizing your newly acquired website for search engines should be a priority to boost traffic and visibility. A strategic SEO approach entails extensive keyword research, on-page optimization, and creation of high-value content.

First, conduct thorough keyword research to identify terms and phrases aligned with your business offerings. Brainstorm a wide list of keywords potentially relevant to your products or services. Then use keyword research tools (RankIQ is great!) to analyze monthly search volume and competition for each keyword. This informs you of the most viable keywords to target that have sufficient search volume but reasonable competition.

Next, work these researched keywords into your site’s metadata, content, and architecture. Update page titles and meta descriptions for each page with relevant target keywords. Incorporate keywords naturally into headings, image alt text, URLs, and page content without over-optimizing.

Remember, optimizing for users comes first. Ensure your content provides value, depth, and useful information related to those keywords. Search engines reward pages that satisfy search intent with engagement and authority.

An effective SEO strategy requires continuously creating content optimized around researched keywords. Publish blog posts, guides, and resources focused on priority topics and questions from your industry. This content fuels organic growth over time.

With diligent keyword research, precise on-page optimization, and valuable content creation, your newly acquired website will attract more relevant organic traffic from search engines, increasing visibility.

Quick Win #6: Review and Optimize the Checkout Process

If your new website purchase has an established product for sale, one important quick win is to review the checkout and payment process.

Look for opportunities to reduce unnecessary steps in your ecommerce store. Make the checkout flow intuitive, and highlight security features. Abandoned shopping carts are often the result of a confusing, tedious, or overbearing checkout process.

Ensure checkout follows a simple, linear progression. Limit form fields to only essential information needed to complete the transaction.

Highlight secure payment options to provide reassurance to customers submitting payment details. Also test the checkout on mobile to identify any usability issues. With most traffic now on smartphones, mobile-friendly checkout is critical.

By refining your checkout process, you can directly reduce cart abandonment, leading to higher conversion rates and more revenue from your newly acquired site.

Quick Win #7: Utilize Social Media and Email Marketing

In addition to on-site optimization, actively promoting your newly acquired website through social media, paid advertising, and other online marketing strategies can significantly widen your reach and get your brand in front of more potential customers.

With billions of active users, social platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn provide access to vast audiences, especially when targeting your posts and ads to precise demographics.

Create engaging social content like behind-the-scenes photos, videos, infographics, and articles to build an audience and drive traffic back to your website.

Paid advertising avenues like Google Ads, Facebook ads, and display ads allow you to have more control in directly reaching users interested in your products, services, or content. Retargeting ads that follow-up with previous site visitors can also effectively move leads down the funnel.

Content marketing involves consistently publishing informative, relevant articles and resources that attract organic search traffic. This positions your brand as an authority in your industry while converting website visitors into customers.

Email marketing via segmented campaigns nurtures relationships with existing customers and converts new leads into buyers. Offer lead magnets like guides or checklists to build your email list. Promoting the improved site builds momentum. Automated emails like abandon cart reminders can especially increase sales.

Implementing select social, advertising, and marketing tactics that align with your goals and audience will amplify your website improvement efforts. Driving qualified traffic to a well-optimized site leads to conversions.

Quick Win #8: Create Valuable Lead Magnets

Offering free resources (freemiums) in exchange for contact details is an effective tactic to start building your email subscriber list. These “lead magnets” provide value to potential customers while capturing their email addresses for future marketing.

Identify topics and resources aligned with your offerings that would appeal to your target audience. For example, a home organization site could offer a downloadable housekeeping checklist, or a date night site could offer romantic coupon printables.

Gate the lead magnet behind an email signup form. In exchange for their email address, visitors can download the resource. Provide a compelling yet honest title and description for the lead magnet.

Now that you’ve captured these new contacts, you can begin sending relevant email campaigns tailored to their interests based on which lead magnet they opted into.

Quick Win #9: Integrate Social Media Sharing Buttons

Integrating social media sharing buttons can boost your website’s visibility and encourage users to share your content.

By adding these buttons to your site, you provide an easy way for visitors to share your articles and other valuable content with their social networks. This not only increases your brand awareness but also helps drive traffic back to your site.

One of the benefits of integrating social media sharing buttons is the concept of social proof. When readers see that others have shared your content, it adds credibility to your brand and increases the likelihood that they will also engage with your content.

Placing these buttons on each article ensures users can easily find and share your content. You also open up the opportunity for others to share your content via external links, which can improve your website’s search engine rankings.

Search engines like Google consider external links as a sign of credibility and authority, which can positively impact your website’s visibility in search results.

By making it easy for users to share your content, you are more likely to generate more traffic and reach new audiences. This is especially true when you regularly publish new and valuable content that users find interesting and want to share with their followers.

So, don’t miss out on the opportunity to integrate social media sharing buttons and leverage the power of social sharing to boost your website’s visibility and increase brand awareness.

By following these quick wins, you’ll boost your new-to-you website’s performance and visitor satisfaction and will be well on your way to having a fantastic site!