The Ins and Outs of Status Pages
Tags: devops, incidentresponse, sre, development
Published: 2023-10-17 13:21:48

Maintaining high customer satisfaction is one of the most important parts of running a business, and part of keeping your customers happy is keeping them updated. This is especially critical for e-commerce or other digital services businesses, as some customers may not think they are as transparent as in-person stores.

Status pages provide real-time and accurate information on the health and performance of your online services. If there's ever a delay or any other issue, customers can check the status page to find out why and when they can expect things to be back up and running.

But before you rush into implementing a status page for your business, take some time to review the finer details and how it will benefit your business in particular.

## Content Index

- [What Are Status Pages?](#what-are-status-pages)
- [Importance of Status Pages for Businesses](#importance-of-status-pages-for-businesses)
- [Key Components of Status Pages](#key-components-of-status-pages)
- [Benefits of Using Status Pages](#benefits-of-using-status-pages)
- [Incident & Maintenance History](#incident-maintenance-history)
- [Status Page Best Practices](#status-page-best-practices)

## What Are Status Pages?

A status page is a specially designed web page that offers real-time information about the current status of services, operations, systems, or applications. This type of page originated from the need to prioritize transparency and instant updates in customer relations, making them indispensable in today's fast-paced digital world. They also serve a crucial role in incident management, allowing businesses to adequately communicate outages, updates, or maintenance activities to site visitors.

By condensing the information into a centralized location, users can more easily check the status of a particular service, dramatically reducing the volume of related support tickets and inquiries. This decreases the burden placed on customer service agents, allowing them to focus more of their time and energy on requests they can address immediately.

Status pages are incredibly adaptable. They can be public status pages accessible to anyone browsing the web or private status pages tailored for a particular audience, like specific users or internal team members. 

Modern status pages often employ additional technology on top of basic reporting. For example, automated email notifications keep users and team members informed of the status without having to manually check the status page on a regular basis. Proactive communication tools like status pages improve the user experience and build customer trust, demonstrating that the company is being as transparent as possible.

## Importance of Status Pages for Businesses

As more and more companies shift to an online-based business model, the need for smooth-functioning services is paramount. Even minor outages or disruptions can lead to a substantial loss in income and reputation if not handled and communicated properly. Status pages are essential in such scenarios since they promptly communicate these disturbances to the customer base.

Customers typically appreciate being made aware of potential obstacles to services or products they were expecting to receive — and an estimated resolution time. A timely update can mitigate potential frustration or confusion. 

Companies can minimize but never entirely avoid technical and operational issues. A well-curated status page can boost your brand's reputation, as it reflects your unwavering commitment to transparency, honesty, and proper customer service.

There are also internal benefits to status pages. The technical and customer support teams are under less pressure during incidents, allowing them to focus on troubleshooting and resolving the issue. It also ensures employees and business partners are made aware of when they can resume work as normal.

## Key Components of Status Pages

![Key Components of Status Pages](https://www.statuspal.io/images/site/statuspal-notifications-illustration-2.svg)

Status pages vary widely in design and features depending on the business's needs and primary audience. However, there are several key components that make up an ideal status page business plan.

### Incident Communication and Updates

[Communication and updates](https://www.statuspal.io/blog/2021-11-19-all-about-incident-communication-what-it-is-how-to-do-it-and-why-its-crucial-for-businesses) are at the very core of any effective status page. Whenever something doesn't work as expected, users can go to the status page for accurate and up-to-date information on the situation. 

While operational issues are inevitable, there are still right and wrong ways to handle them. Continuously updating the page with as much information as possible is essential. Depending on the target audience of the page, delving into the details, causes, and anticipated effects (and a projected timeline for resolution) is often the best way to manage user expectations.

### Real-Time Status Monitoring and Incident Automation

Advanced status pages often integrate real-time monitoring of the site's services, refreshing automatically whenever there's a status change. This makes sure all information remains current, preventing the more common issue of customers complaining that the status page reports no problems even though the site, or one of its major services, is down.

### Customization and Branding

In order to foster a sense of trust, it's important that the status page branding mirrors the identity and the design of the rest of the website. Everything from colors, fonts, graphics, and wording must be in accordance with what customers are used to seeing from your brand.

### Real-Time Notifications

A status page isn't the only communication tool to focus on. Other forms of proactive communication are also a must. For example, an opt-in feature where users and customers can receive real-time updates through status widgets, email, SMS, or in-app alerts and status notifications. 

## Benefits of Using Status Pages

Investing in a well-made and well-maintained status page can have numerous benefits for both your business and your customers.

### Transparent Communication With Customers

Trust, transparency, and communication are the cornerstones of any successful business-client relationship. This is particularly vital if a service is compromised and customers rely on the company website for clear information. 

Status pages excel at this, offering a real-time glimpse into the company's operational and service status and ensuring customers aren't left in the dark about what matters.

### Reduced Support Burden

Ensuring your customer and technical support departments aren't flooded with near-identical requests from hundreds or even thousands of customers should be a top priority.

### Enhanced Customer Trust and Loyalty

Customer trust and loyalty take years upon years to build but can be torn down overnight. Consistent transparency during hard times can ensure your relationship with your customers survives in the long term. 

Businesses can prove they are responsible and credible by routinely updating status pages and being open and communicative about service hiccups. This proactive approach to communication problems doesn't only maintain current levels of trust with your customers. It also fosters more customer loyalty to your brand.

## Incident & Maintenance History

The way businesses handle service interruption has the potential to influence their public image and overall reputation. By embracing transparency, companies can elevate themselves and enhance customer trust. [Status page platforms like Statuspal](https://www.statuspal.io/features/status-page) are pioneers in the industry, offering status update tools in the form of uptime calendars and graphs.

When customers are able to access status information readily, they can see firsthand the company's proficiency in managing unforeseen challenges. By keeping a record or history of incidents and how they were managed, you'd be showcasing both the highs and rare lows your company goes through. Customers who are shown an honest track record of response times tend to trust the company to solve future problems with the same efficiency.

## Status Page Best Practices

Looking at the immense value they can bring to businesses, it's understandable why status pages need to be implemented with care and regularly reconfigured to meet the expectations of a business's current customer base. For that, there are a couple of best practices that you should follow in your implementation:

- **Accessibility & Visibility:** Status pages must be easy for users to find. You can link to them directly from your main website to avoid confusion. Make it a regular practice to bring up the status page to customers whenever they face an issue.
- **Commitment to Transparency:** Authenticity is key. That's why it's important to avoid underplaying, inflating, or downright concealing certain numbers to minimize the scope of the issue. Being transparent about the situation doesn't only keep users informed but also underlines your brand's commitment to honesty.
- **Regular Updates:** Frequent and automated updates are key to a timely status page that can always be a trusted source of current information. Neglecting updates defeats the purpose of a status page and can sow doubt and confusion among your users.

## Enhance Your Status Updates With the Right Tool

Status pages are rapidly increasing in value to businesses that operate partially or fully online. They facilitate transparent communications, reduce the burden on technical and customer support teams, and help build trust with your users and customers.

Luckily, you don't have to have the technical knowledge and resources to [build and maintain a status page from scratch](https://www.statuspal.io/blog/2022-02-28-why-self-hosting-might-not-be-a-good-choice-for-your-status-page). Working with status page services, such as Statuspal, can grant you access to a fully integrated status page that includes all major components. Statuspal is the perfect mix of a customizable status page tool and a ready-for-you solution that includes real-time status monitoring, incident tracking, and automated notifications.

[Sign up for a 14-day free trial](https://statuspal.io/registrations/new) with Statuspal and take your incident communication tools to the next level!