Great websites have a purpose. Some are commercial and fill a market need, like eBay and Amazon. Others are social and provide an outlet for like-minded people to communicate, like Facebook and The Fresh Loaf. There are still other sites, however, that are more personal. They don’t serve the needs of others. Their purpose is defined by their creators. I’m talking about personal home pages, blogs,and portfolio sites.
Would you be surprised to discover that tons of data about author-centric sites have been collected and analyzed? The statistics say that most blogs are abandoned after only two months. Why?
For me, I find I begin to neglect a website when it no longer meets my needs. It’s not that the site itself has changed or failed to meet my expectations. Rather, my needs have changed, and when I realize they have, I begin designing a replacement site.
And here it is. For some more than a year, my previous site met my needs: a simple portfolio to show some cool stuff I made. Recently, it became increasingly clear that I needed something more organized and focused, a site I could use to market myself and my skills.
If your needs have changed, don’t abandon your site. Design a new (or revised) site and relaunch!