Most business owners have a vague sense that their website should be “doing more” but no clear picture of what a healthy website looks like.
Here’s a practical checklist – the things I look at when I’m evaluating whether a site is healthy or quietly costing someone business.
It’s giving you inquiries or sales
This is the whole point. A healthy website converts visitors into action: inquiries, purchases, bookings.
If people are showing up but nothing is happening, something in the experience is breaking down. Start here before you look at anything else.
The bounce rate is low
People are landing on your site and sticking around long enough to do something.
A high bounce rate – lots of people arriving and immediately leaving – usually means the top of your page isn’t communicating clearly or quickly enough. First impressions matter, and online you get about three seconds.
Traffic is coming from multiple places
A healthy site pulls visitors from search, social media, and direct sources like email or links. Heavy dependence on any one channel is a risk. If your social media disappears tomorrow, does your site still get traffic? It should.
Traffic is generally growing
Month over month, the trend should be upward, even if it wobbles. Gradual, steady growth is the goal. If you have a seasonal business like wedding photography, construction, or tourism, expect natural dips and spikes. That’s normal. What you’re watching for is the overall trajectory over time.
One thing worth knowing: if your traffic suddenly jumps 10x overnight, don’t get excited. That’s almost always bots crawling your site. It’s a normal part of being on the internet, and there are protections in place for it. It’s not a problem, it’s just not a win either.
There are no 404 errors
No broken links, no deleted pages sending visitors to a dead end. 404 errors are quiet website killers: bad for visitors, bad for Google, and easy to miss if nobody’s watching. 404 errors are also one of the first places I look when deciding what a healthy website looks like for a new client.
Page speed is reasonable
Page speed matters, but probably less than the internet would have you believe.
The main thing: make sure your images are optimized for web before they go on your site. Oversized image files are the most common culprit for slow load times, and it’s an easy fix.
You show up in search, not just for your own name
Anyone can show up when someone Googles their business name. A healthy website shows up when people search for what you do: the services, the products, the problems you solve.
If you’re only ranking for your own name, your SEO has room to grow.
You’re following the rules
ADA compliance means your site is accessible to people with disabilities. CCPA compliance relates to data privacy. These aren’t optional, and they’re worth making sure are actually in place – not just assumed.
How did your site do? If a few of these gave you pause, that’s useful information. And if you’d rather have someone else keep an eye on it for you, that’s exactly what website management is for.