11 Common Website Refresh Challenges (and How to Fix Them)
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A website refresh sounds like it should feel… refreshing. But halfway through updating old content, reorganizing pages, and chasing down broken links, it’s easy to feel like you’ve opened a can of digital worms.
Whether you’re doing the work yourself or working with a pro, a refresh often uncovers more roadblocks than you expected. The good news? Most of these issues have a clear, manageable fix.
This post walks you through 11 common website refresh challenges, with practical solutions that make real impact. And if you’d prefer a little extra help, I’ve included two ways we can work together to get it done.
TL;DR Summary
Challenges & Fixes
- Outdated pages, broken links, and stale bios quietly hurt trust and conversions
- Jumbled navigation and mixed branding confuse users and dilute your message
- Mobile issues, weak CTAs, and slow-loading images = missed opportunities
- Accessibility and analytics are easy to overlook but crucial for long-term growth
- SEO basics like titles, meta descriptions, and redirects make a big difference
- Trying to fix everything at once? That’s a fast track to burnout
Fix What’s Holding Your Website Back
1. Outdated Pages, Expired Promos, Stale Bios
What felt current six months ago might already be throwing visitors off today. Outdated service pages, promos that have come and gone, or bios that no longer match your business can all quietly erode trust.
Start by reviewing your main service and product pages. Then move on to time-sensitive areas, like event announcements, seasonal offers, or about pages that haven’t seen an update in years.
While you’re reviewing your content, keep an eye out for links that no longer go anywhere…
2. Broken Links You Haven’t Noticed
Nothing says “we don’t check our site often” like clicking a button that leads nowhere. Broken links are frustrating for users, and they can hurt your SEO, too.
Use the Ahrefs Broken Link Checker to scan your site. It’s free (no login required) and takes just a few minutes. I recommend checking your site quarterly and fixing or redirecting anything that’s out of date.
Structure and Style that Make or Break the Experience
3. Navigation Confusion and Your Website’s Journey
If your menu has turned into a junk drawer, you’re not alone. Over time, it’s easy to keep adding pages and dropdowns until the whole thing feels like a maze. (Ask me how I know!)
Your website’s navigation should help visitors move through your site with ease. Try narrowing down your main menu to core pages and group things in a way that feels intuitive to your audience (not just to you).
If you’re not sure where to begin, I’m working on a Website Navigation Kit (coming soon) to help you restructure your menu and guide visitors more strategically.
4. Branding Mashups: When Old Meets New (and Not in a Good Way)
Sometimes a website refresh is sparked by a bigger shift: a rebrand, new offers, or a clearer niche. That’s exciting, but it also means you might be mixing legacy visuals with your new direction.
Take a critical look at your fonts, colors, photo styles, button shapes, and even the tone of your copy. If it feels like a mix of two different brands, it probably is!
If you’re looking for branding that’s easy to customize and actually looks professional, I recommend Davey & Krista’s Canva Brand Kits. They’re thoughtfully designed, polished, and so easy to make your own.
5. Mobile Woes—Why Your Site Might Look Broken on a Phone
Just because your website looks good on your laptop doesn’t mean it holds up on a phone.
Common red flags:
- Text that’s too small to read
- Images that stretch weirdly
- Buttons that are hard to tap
- Sections that disappear completely
These things matter, especially since mobile traffic often makes up more than half of your site visits.
Use the free Bing Mobile Friendliness Test to see how your site performs. It’s quick and free, and it can catch issues you might not even know are there.
Liz is so easy to work with, making the whole process absolutely painless. We started with the homepage and I ended up with several new tweaks across the site that have made a massive impact to the visual cohesiveness. Thank you Liz!”
Conversion-Killers You Can’t Afford to Miss
6. Weak CTAs (and Where to Put Strong Ones Instead)
If your site doesn’t tell visitors what to do next, don’t be surprised when they do… nothing. (Ouch!)
Calls to action (CTAs) are often an afterthought, but they’re one of the most important parts of your site. A good CTA doesn’t push; it guides. Think beyond “Buy Now” or “Subscribe.”
What’s the natural next step someone should take after reading this page?
If you’re stuck, Sage Grayson’s free workshop, Never Leave ‘Em Hanging, is a great resource. She shares 20 practical CTA ideas you can start using right away, plus common mistakes to avoid.
7. Image Chaos—Before and After Upload
Large, unoptimized images are one of the top reasons websites feel slow or clunky. They also chew up storage space and affect loading times, especially on mobile.
Before you even upload an image, use Imagify to compress it. Their free plan covers around 200 images per month, and it works for any platform.
If you’re on WordPress, ShortPixel can automatically optimize your media library after you upload photos.
And if your media library is a hot mess?
Michelle Lee’s Media 101 with WordPress training will help you get it organized, keep it optimized, and stop uploading the same image five times because you couldn’t find it.
8. Accessibility is Ongoing
Accessibility is about making your content available to everyone. But if you’ve ever tried to decode accessibility guidelines, you know how quickly it can get overwhelming.
That’s why I love Accessibility Allies Assembled, created by Ami Hook-Ireland.
It’s a low-cost membership that helps you take meaningful, bite-sized action toward accessibility, with regular check-ins, community support, and real rewards for your progress.
If accessibility keeps slipping to the bottom of your to-do list, this is the kind of structure and support that helps it stay top of mind.
The Tech and Strategy Back End You Can’t Skip
9. Tracking Trouble
Refreshing your site is the perfect time to review what you’re tracking (and how).
Instead of digging through confusing dashboards or feeling like you’re being watched by Big Data, try Fathom Analytics. It’s privacy-focused, simple to install, and gives you the insights you actually need to make smarter decisions about your content and marketing.
10. SEO? What SEO?
You don’t need to become an SEO expert to make your website more discoverable, but you do need a plan.
My favorite budget-friendly tool is SiteGuru, which works with any website platform and gives you a prioritized to-do list, not a wall of tech jargon. You get an email notification whenever your regularly scheduled SEO audit report is ready, and then you can tackle your new technical & content to-do lists!
Start by reviewing your page titles, meta descriptions, and internal links. Small changes can have a big impact.
11. Redirects: The Silent Saboteur
When I refreshed my own site, I made some big changes: new offers, retired services, and a more focused direction overall. That meant some of my old pages weren’t coming with me. To avoid broken links and protect my SEO, I used WP 301 Redirects, and it worked beautifully.
If your website refresh involves removing or changing URLs, every single one of those changes needs a redirect. Don’t freak out—this isn’t as complicated as it sounds!
For WordPress users, WP 301 Redirects makes this easy. It lets you point old URLs to new destinations, protect your SEO, and avoid confusing your users with broken paths.
If you’re not sure which pages are safe to let go, keep a list of your top-visited URLs before making any changes, just in case.
You Don’t Have to Fix It All Today
As a former teacher, I can’t help myself—I’m slipping in a little extra credit:
12. (Bonus) Trying to Do Everything At Once
Trying to fix everything at once is a fast track to burnout. Most website updates don’t fail because they’re too hard—they fizzle out because the to-do list feels endless.
That’s why I’m creating a free 30-Day Website Refresh email series(coming soon!) You’ll get daily prompts that take just 15–20 minutes, guiding you through one meaningful task at a time.
Expert Help, When You’re Ready
If you’d rather hand off the to-do list to someone else, I offer a Website Rejuvenation Day. We’ll start with a strategy call to determine what matters most, and then I’ll implement those changes for you—all in one focused day.
We probably won’t be able to tackle every single task, but we will prioritize what will make the biggest difference for your site. It’s a refresh that actually gets done, without dragging on for weeks.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the difference between a website refresh and a full redesign?
A refresh updates your existing site—new content, improved layout, better performance—without starting from scratch. A full redesign usually means a new platform, new structure, or major rebranding. If your foundation is solid but things feel outdated or cluttered, a refresh is often the smarter, faster, and more economical move.
How do I know if I need a refresh or just a few updates?
Start with the high-impact areas: Is your content current? Are visitors taking action? Does the site feel cohesive? If small updates aren’t moving the needle, it might be time for a more strategic refresh.
Do I need to fix all 11 issues before launching my new site?
No. Prioritize what affects your user experience most. Navigation, mobile view, and CTAs are a great place to start.
Can I hire you to review my site before I refresh it?
Absolutely! Book a Website Wellness Review, and I’ll give you a strategic, personalized audit with practical next steps.
