Spring Cleaning ... Web site maintenance and promotion  April is finally here.  Flowers are blooming, grass is turning green and birds are chirping ... life is re-emerging.  Your company's Web site might be due for a spring cleaning.  Bust out the mops and gloves and get ready to give it a good scrubbing. Where to start? To properly perform Web site maintenance, you need to know what your Web site needs.  Put yourself in your visitor's shoes.  Is the Web site easy to navigate?  Is it visually stimulating? Does it reflect your company's image?  Is the content up-to-date, relevant and accurate? Mind the details ... clean every nook and cranny Does your site increase or decrease your credibility?  Does it look professional?  The content of your site should project the image you want to promote.  First impressions are important.  Potential customers will visit your Web site first to check you out. It's important that your online image accurately reflects your company's image.  Nothing spells "unprofessional" like spelling mistakes, inconsistent font use, outdated information, dead links, etc.  It pays to pay attention. De-clutter and get organized Clarify your navigation.  How easy is it to find your way through the site?   Is it clear which elements of your pages are clickable? Hard to find information will frustrate your readers, giving them a reason to leave.   Consistent design and navigation rules should apply throughout your Web site. Polish your look ... let it shine Find ways to make your Web site interactive, engaging readers to further explore the site.   Nothing is more boring than a static site. Create links to relevant information, upload video to add site, sound and motion, write a blog or connect to other professional blogs to solicit and respond to input.  These types of interactivity draw readers in, giving you an opportunity to sell your business.                                                 Keep it fresh In order to maximize your search, it's important to regularly update Web content.  Search engines pick up on new key words and new content. Changing content is a way to keep your Web site fresh and interesting to repeat traffic.  Studies show that regularly updated sites have more return visitors and higher page views.  If you need help cleaning up your Web site, or if you are looking for a knowledgeable third party to assess your online image contact us, we'd love to help. Vehr Communications Adds Site, Sound, & Motion to Web Site                                                     Learn more about Vehr Communications by viewing our dynamic video on our homepage.  The video was produced and hosted by EMI Network's Digitorial Media. Click on the image (on the right) to view our video and learn more about our strategic communications offerings! Subscribe to "Vr3" Please visit our blog.  It's called Vr3 .  The "r3" stands for reputations, relationships and results.  That's PR.  That's what we do.  And, that's what we exchange ideas about on Vr3.   Good Reads on Web sites Amazon: 1. The Non-Designer's Web Book by Robin Williams & John Tollett 2. Web Accessibility: Web Standards & Regulatory Compliance by Jim Thatcher, Andrew   Kirkpatrick & Mark Urban 3. 101 Ways to Promote Your Web Site by Susan Sweeney   PR News, PR Insights This edition of March Forth provides links (on left) to some excellent blog discussions concerning this important topic. As practitioners, we use communications to manage reputations, build relationships and deliver results.  The Internet is changing how we do it, but how we have always done it is just as important. We hope the connections we provide here, and the various additional news outlets and blogs we connect to on the Vehr Communications' Web site, help you to understand this rapidly changing industry as much as they help us.