Is Your Website Working? Here's How to Check (And Why You Should)

The other day, I was trying to order takeout from my favorite restaurant's website. Nothing loaded except an error page. Frustrated, I ended up ordering from somewhere else. This got me thinking about how many customers they probably lost that day - all because their website was down.

When Your Website Goes Dark

Website downtime is like having a store with its lights off - people walk by, see it's closed, and go somewhere else. Even worse, they might not come back. I've seen small businesses lose sales and big companies damage their reputation, all because they didn't know their site was having problems.

Status Codes: What Your Website Is Trying to Tell You

Think of status codes as your website's way of talking to you. Here's what they're saying:

• 200 - "All good here!" Your site is working perfectly.
• 301/302 - "We moved! Follow me this way!" The page has a new home.
• 404 - "Oops, can't find that!" Like looking for a book that's not on the shelf.
• 500 - "Sorry, we messed up!" Something's wrong on the server side.

Checking Your Site's Health (The Easy Way)

You don't need to be tech-savvy to check if your site's working. Here's what I do:

1. Head over to NetworkWhois's status checker
2. Type in your website address
3. Hit check and see what's up

Our tool tells you:

• If your site's loading properly
• How fast it responds
• Whether there are any weird redirects
• Basic security stuff you should know about

Keep an Eye on Things

I learned this the hard way: check your site regularly. Here's what works for me:

• Quick check in the morning with my coffee
• Double-check after updating anything on the site
• Pay attention to how fast pages load
• Set reminders to check regularly

When Something's Wrong

Found a problem? Don't sweat it. Here's what to do:

1. Write down what error you're seeing
2. See if it's just one page or the whole site
3. Think about any recent changes you made
4. Give your hosting company a call if needed

Bottom Line

Your website is like your digital storefront - you need to make sure the lights are on and the door is open. I've seen too many businesses lose customers because they didn't know their site was down. Take five minutes today to check your site - your future self will thank you.

PS: Bookmark our status checker. It's free, it's quick, and it might just save your day sometime.