The health of your hotel website can have a big impact on its performance and conversion rate, and even the smallest, most seemingly insignificant detail must be taken into account. You may be offering people the holiday of a lifetime, but if you don’t take care of your hotel website, people may become exasperated when trying to book, or it may not even reach the audience you need it to. That’s why it is so important to carry out maintenance tasks, to make sure your hotel website is up-to-date, fast and healthy website.
In this blog, we have named the top five quick and easy hotel website maintenance tasks, plus our top tips for implementing them as part of your monthly routine.
1. Hotel Website Updates
Keeping your hotel website software up to date is probably the most important maintenance task you can check for regularly to avoid a number of problems.
This step is crucial for several reasons, starting with security. WordPress and other CMS updates usually include security improvements and patches to address vulnerabilities. By keeping your WordPress installation up to date, you reduce the risk of security breaches and protect your website from potential threats. Updates also typically come with bug fixes that address issues or glitches present in previous versions.
Staying updated ensures a smoother and more reliable website performance. Regular updates help maintain compatibility between different components of your website, ensuring everything works seamlessly together. By updating it regularly, you can take advantage of the latest tools and capabilities available. Having your site up to date also helps with performance optimisations, making your website faster and more efficient. This is essential for providing a positive user experience and improving search engine rankings.
But don’t stop there, you’ll also want to make sure any plugins and themes are updated to achieve the best performance and security possible.
Finally, to finish this section you’ll need to delete both the plugins and the themes that you are not using. This will increase space on the website, eliminate potential threats to the website due to outdated elements and further increase the health of the website.
2. Create Backups For Your Hotel Website Data
Creating backups for your website regularly is essential to safeguard against potential data loss, security threats, and unforeseen issues. In the dynamic online environment where websites are susceptible to crashes, hacking, and accidental errors, having recent backups ensures a safety net should the worst happen.
These backups act as a snapshot of your website’s current state, allowing you to quickly recover losses in case of incidents such as malware attacks, server failures, or complications arising from software updates. By maintaining regular backups, you not only protect your valuable data but also gain the flexibility to restore your website to a stable version, effectively mitigating the impact of human errors or unexpected technical challenges.
If you aren’t already doing it, then it’s time to start making regular backups of your hotel website. They are a fundamental aspect of website management, serving as a safeguard against data loss, security threats, software issues, human errors, and unforeseen technical problems.
3. Hotel Website Security and Malware Scans
This step is fundamental to maintaining a secure online presence. Nowadays, cyber threats pose significant risks to websites, making regular security scans a crucial proactive measure. These scans help identify vulnerabilities, potential malware, and suspicious activity that could compromise the integrity of your website and sensitive data.
One highly recommended tool for WordPress users is the Wordfence plugin. We recommend this plugin as it offers robust security features, including malware scanning, firewall protection, and real-time threat defence. Its ability to promptly detect and address security issues, coupled with regular updates to combat emerging threats, makes it an invaluable asset in fortifying your hotel website against cyber attacks.
By incorporating Wordfence into your security strategy, you not only enhance the resilience of your site but also contribute to a safer online environment for your hotel’s bookers.
4. Compressing images WebP
WebP is a highly efficient image format developed by Google, this offers superior quality at smaller file sizes compared to traditional formats such as JPEG or PNG. Compressing images with WebP is crucial for website optimisation. This not only enhances user satisfaction but also contributes to bandwidth savings, making the website more accessible for users on slower connections.
Additionally, the use of compressed WebP images positively impacts SEO by improving page speed, potentially leading to higher search engine rankings. As mobile browsing becomes increasingly prevalent, optimising images with WebP ensures a responsive and mobile-friendly website, catering to the diverse needs of online users.
5. Find & Fix broken links
Identifying and rectifying broken links on a website is pivotal for ensuring a seamless and reliable user experience. Broken links can lead to frustration among visitors and negative SEO rankings. Regularly identifying and fixing these links helps maintain the integrity of the website’s content, ensuring that users can access information without disruptions.
A recommended tool for this purpose is DeadLinkChecker.com. This website provides a convenient and efficient solution to scan for broken links, on your site enabling webmasters to identify and address issues promptly, this will help you not only enhance user satisfaction but also contribute to a more robust online presence with improved search engine performance.
Summary
As you start this journey to boost your hotel website’s health, remember that maintaining a strong online presence requires dedication and expertise. The five maintenance tasks outlined in this blog are just the beginning of a comprehensive strategy to ensure your hotel website remains secure, efficient, and user-friendly.
For personalised and professional support in implementing these tasks, as well as for full hotel website development, design and digital marketing services, consider reaching out to Up Hotel Agency. Our team is dedicated to helping your hotel stand out in the digital landscape. Don’t let maintenance tasks become a burden – let us handle them, so you can focus on providing your guests with the exceptional experiences they deserve.
Get in touch with Up Hotel Agency today and take the next step towards elevating your hotel’s online presence. Whether it’s routine maintenance, website development, or design enhancements, we are here to support you every step of the way. Your success is our priority, and we look forward to helping your hotel thrive in the digital realm!
