Your website is open for business 24 hours a day, seven days a week. But here’s the question most small business owners in Wisconsin and Minnesota never stop to ask: “Is it actually working?”
A slow page, a confusing menu, or a contact form that nobody can find can quietly cost you customers every single day without you ever knowing it. Thankfully, reviewing your website design does not require a marketing degree or a big budget.
This guide walks you through a simple website review you can complete in about an hour, so you know what is working and what needs attention.
Step 1: Start With First Impressions
Open your website on a fresh browser or, better yet, ask someone who has never seen it to pull it up and tell you what they think it does within ten seconds.
That first impression test matters. Google research consistently shows that visitors form an opinion about a website within milliseconds, and most will leave within seconds if the page feels confusing, cluttered, or slow. Ask yourself:
- Is it immediately clear what your business does?
- Does the design look current and professional?
- Is the most important information visible without scrolling?
If the answers are no, the top of your homepage is the first place to focus.
Step 2: Check Your Website Speed
Page speed is one of the most important and most overlooked parts of any website review. A 2024 study found that 53% of mobile users will abandon a page that takes longer than three seconds to load. For small businesses competing in markets like the Twin Cities, Madison, or the Fox Valley, a slow site is a direct conversion problem.
Use Google’s free PageSpeed Insights tool to test your site. It will show you a score and flag specific issues slowing things down. Common culprits include:
- Large uncompressed images
- Too many third-party plugins
- Outdated hosting plans
- Unminified code
You do not need to fix all of these yourself, but knowing they exist is the first step.
Step 3: Review Your Mobile Website Experience
More than half of all web traffic now comes from mobile devices. Pull up your website on your phone right now and navigate through it the way a customer would. Look for:
- Text that is too small to read without zooming
- Buttons that are hard to tap
- Images that are cut off or distorted
- Menus that are difficult to open or navigate
- Contact information that requires scrolling to find
If anything feels frustrating on mobile, your customers feel it too.
Step 4: Audit Your Content and Messaging
Good design gets people to stay. Good content gets them to act. Read through your website as if you are a first-time visitor and ask:
- Does the copy explain what you do and who you serve?
- Is there a clear call to action on every main page?
- Is the language simple and direct, or full of jargon?
- Are your services, pricing, and contact options easy to find?
For Wisconsin and Minnesota small businesses, especially, local relevance matters. Mentioning the communities you serve, the industries you work with, and the region you call home builds trust with the people most likely to hire you.
Step 5: Look at Your SEO Basics
You do not need to be an SEO expert to catch the most common issues. Work through this quick checklist:
- Does every page have a unique title and meta description?
- Are your most important keywords used naturally in your headings and body copy?
- Do your images have descriptive alt text?
- Does your site have a Google Business Profile linked and updated?
- Are there any broken links or missing pages?
Free tools like Google Search Console and Ubersuggest can help you spot gaps without any technical background.
Step 6: Evaluate Your Calls to Action
Every page on your website should have one clear next step for the visitor. A phone number. A contact form. A request-a-quote button. If a visitor reaches the bottom of any page and is not sure what to do next, that page is not finished.
Review each page and ask: what do I want someone to do here, and is that action obvious, easy, and visible?
Step 7: Get an Outside Set of Eyes
This is the step most business owners skip, and the one that often surfaces the most useful feedback. Ask a trusted customer, a colleague, or a local marketing professional to walk through your site and share honest reactions.
At Sievers Creative, we have these conversations with Minnesota and Wisconsin businesses every day. From our Red Wing office, we help companies turn website confusion into clarity with practical feedback and honest recommendations.
If your website feels outdated, slow, or unclear, our experienced team can help you prioritise updates that actually move the needle.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often should I review my website design?
A full review once a year is a solid baseline. If your business has changed significantly — new services, new locations, new branding — review it sooner. A quick monthly check on speed and mobile experience is also a smart habit.
What is the most common website problem small businesses overlook?
Mobile experience and page speed are the two biggest issues we see consistently. Most business owners build and review their websites on a desktop, so mobile problems go unnoticed until a customer mentions it.
Do I need to redesign my site or just update it?
Not always. Many websites need a refresh rather than a full rebuild — updated copy, better images, faster hosting, and clearer calls to action can make a significant difference without starting from scratch.
What tools can I use to review my website for free?
Common free tools include Google PageSpeed Insights for performance, Google Search Console for indexing issues, and Hotjar or Microsoft Clarity for user behaviour insights.
