Top 10 Features to Look for in a Status Page Solution for Your Business

Helpful Summary 

• Overview: This guide explores the essential features you should consider when looking for a status page solution for your business.
• Why you can trust us: At Instatus, we’ve helped endless clients improve incident communication with real-time updates and customizable status pages. Our clients keep their users informed during outages every step of the way.
• Why it matters: A status page solution is the perfect tool to keep your users informed during outages or updates. This helps you create better customer experiences and reduce support requests. 
• Action points: Make sure your status page solution has the following features to create the best user experiences during down time.
• Further research: For more status page insights and tools, check out the Instatus blog.

Why Do You Need a Status Page Solution for Your Business? 

If you don’t have a status page solution for your business, you can’t communicate effectively during website outages.

Whether your customers rely on your cloud-based software to power their team workflows (or they’re simply addicted to your retail therapy) 👗 — you need a reliable status page solution in case it goes down.

Let’s take a closer look at what a status page solution is and the top features to look for when choosing one for your business. (Or, if you’re just here because you need one, take a quick look at Instatus now.)

What’s a Status Page Solution for Businesses?

A status page solution is a platform or tool that helps you create a status page. You set these up to show the real-time status of your online services, applications, or infrastructure. It’s essential for keeping users informed during outages, slowdowns, or maintenance events. 

Think of it as your company’s communication hub during crises or updates.

Say you run a data center. 

With a status page, you have a way to provide updates on data center outages and maintenance. It can also integrate data from DCIM solutions like Nlyte to indicate the functionality of your infrastructure. For example, the status of cooling systems or potential security breaches.

Status pages also rely on APIs from various systems to display real-time information about whether they’re operational or facing issues. The APIs provide essential data on how healthy the servers, databases, and other critical infrastructure are. 

With this in mind, it may be helpful to learn more about what API management is and some best practices. For example, it’s important to secure APIs to prevent unauthorized access or tampering. This is key to preventing inaccurate status reports and data leaks.

PS: Ready to try a status page solution? Give Instatus a try today.

Common Features in Status Page Solutions

Many status page solutions come with automated alerts, real-time incident updates, and API integrations. With automated alerts, you’ll send and get notifications via email, SMS, or other channels for outages or maintenance. With updates, you’ll send and get automatic updates as incidents arise and resolve.

With API integrations, the solution connects with monitoring and DevOps tools for real-time updates. Status page solutions should also offer customizable pages — where you can brand the page with your logo and colors. They should also offer historical logs that show past incidents and uptime. 

But these are just some basics. You need to make sure your status page solution is more robust so you can reduce frustration and protect user experiences. Keep reading to learn more about what features you should look for in a status page solution.

What Features Should I Look for in a Status Page Solution?

When looking for a status page solution, focus on features that support clear communication, streamline incident management, and enhance user trust. 

It may also be helpful to meet with your development team to discuss common incidents that occur. Jot down why they happen and how to fix them. Your team might also share some features to look for to help make their jobs a bit easier. 

For instance, they might appreciate subscriber management features or multi-language support. Consider sending over a digital form they can fill in so you can make sure the solution has everything your team needs. In our experience, here are some of the key features to consider:

1. Real-Time Updates and Incident Notifications

Real-time updates keep users informed as soon as an issue arises. This reduces frustration and unnecessary support inquiries.

For services with many users or customers, any service interruptions or downtime can lead to serious business consequences. These risks could include revenue loss, reputational damage, or loss of customer trust.

That’s why it’s also important to embed incident response into your status page. When users see that incident response is in action, they’ll know you’re addressing the problem. This helps preserve customer trust during incidents and shows that your team is proactive and responsive. 

Imagine your online store goes down during a big sale. 

With real-time incident response updates, customers see the status and feel reassured that you’re working on getting the shop back up again.

Try Instatus today.

2. Customizable Branding

Your status page should reflect your company’s identity. Customizing your logo, colors, and domain helps your customers recognize it as an official communication channel. 

Tailor Brands provides easy-to-use tools to help you create a professional brand identity, so your status page aligns with your business’s look and feel. When customers see your logo on it, they’ll know they’re in the right place. This familiarity builds confidence, especially during outages. 

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On the flip side, if you don’t have a branded status page, site visitors may get confused. They might assume you’ve been hacked — or that you’ve changed your domain name. 

Picture your project management platform’s logo and branding. (Or any SaaS tool you might use.) If you suddenly see a non-branded status page in place of the home page, you may quickly exit the site to prevent a potential cyber attack. 

3. Multi-Channel Notifications with Detailed Incident Tracking and Resolution Status

Customers use different communication channels, so your status page should support email, SMS, and push notifications. With multi-channel support, users can choose how they receive alerts to make sure they’re staying informed.

For example, if you own an EdTech brand, you might have instructors who prefer alerts by email. And students who prefer text updates.

It’s also important to provide more than just “up” or “down” information. Show users the issue’s progress with detailed timelines and stages. (For instance, the investigation, identification, and resolution. 🔍) This builds trust by showing your team is actively working on the problem.

For instance, if your service experiences issues, provide a highly detailed incident timeline to keep customers updated. 

4. Component-Specific Statuses

Have a business with multiple key systems, like databases or payment gateways? 

Component-specific statuses give users detailed insights into which parts of the service are affected. This is especially helpful when only a specific feature (instead of the whole service) is down.

By clearly marking individual components, users can quickly check if the issue affects what they need. This helps users avoid confusion and unnecessary customer service inquiries.

For example, imagine your payment gateway is experiencing downtime — but the product catalog is still up. Customers visiting the site might worry that nothing’s accessible. (How are they going to buy that ruby red hand mixer now?!)

But with a component-specific status, they see that they can still browse and view products while waiting for the payment issue to be resolved.

PS: Shopping for a status page solution? Try Instatus for free now.

5. Automated Integrations with Monitoring Tools

Integrating with monitoring tools can automate status updates based on real-time data. This reduces the manual workload for your team, speeds up response times, and promotes accurate status reports.

Say your monitoring tool detects a slowdown. It can automatically update the status page, so users know there’s an issue before they even realize it.

You can also use heatmaps to complement your status page solution. They’re great at providing valuable insights into user behavior when you have system issues or downtimes. For example, heatmaps can show how users interact with your site when trying to access unavailable features. 

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If users repeatedly click on certain areas, you’ll know where they expect updates.

6. Uptime and Incident History

Displaying historical uptime and incident logs promotes transparency. 

Users can see how often issues occur and how quickly you resolve them. This information serves as a reliability benchmark. And can help retain existing users and attract new ones.

For example, if a new customer visits your status page and sees a history of 99.9% uptime, it reassures them that they can trust your service. This is especially important if they rely on your solution to manage their team or workload. 

For instance, agencies often rely on cloud-based software to create internal processes for their teams. If they’re in the market for a new tool, they’ll value options that can offer as much uptime as possible.

7. Subscriber Management and Notifications

Subscriber management lets users opt-in for status updates — so they don’t have to constantly check the status page for information. 

Instead, they’ll receive notifications on incidents, resolutions, and maintenance events directly, which keeps them informed in real-time.

This feature is particularly valuable for services with high user traffic. When users are proactively notified, they can make informed decisions and adapt as needed. For example, they might delay non-urgent tasks. Or look for temporary solutions.

For instance, if a customer subscribes to your service’s updates, they’ll receive emails or SMS alerts during incidents. This means they’ll be aware of any issues and resolutions as soon as they happen. This reduces any potential frustration from being caught off-guard on your website.

Providing subscribers with real-time updates also lightens the support load by reducing the number of incoming questions about ongoing issues. This makes it easier for your team to focus on resolving the issue.

8. Postmortem and RCA (Root Cause Analysis) Reports

Publishing post-incident reports shows a commitment to transparency and improvement. It helps retain customer trust after outages — and shows that your business takes downtime seriously.

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For example, after resolving a major incident, publish a detailed report explaining what went wrong. Share how you handled the problem and what steps you’re taking to prevent it from happening again. 

It’s also important to report on performance metrics like average response times and uptime percentages. These insights help identify recurring issues and refine incident management strategies.

For instance, regularly analyzing performance data can reveal patterns in downtime. You can then adjust your infrastructure or processes to improve reliability.

9. Multi-Language Support

For businesses with an international user base, multi-language support ensures that customers across regions understand updates. This helps avoid miscommunication and builds a positive user experience.

For example, if your service operates in the US, Italy, and France, offer status updates in English, Italian, and French.

Offering status updates in a customer’s native language also fosters trust by demonstrating cultural awareness and inclusivity. 

An AI translator can simplify this process by generating accurate translations you can use on your pages. This automation helps you reduce human error, speed up the communication process, and maintain consistent messaging across different regions and languages.

10. Security Features and Access Control

Access control options like Single Sign-On (SSO) and role-based permissions offered by OpenID Connect prevent unauthorized access. This means only relevant team members can make updates. This is especially important if your status page contains sensitive information.

For example, with SSO, your team can access the status page securely. This protects your communication channel while making it easier for authorized staff to update information.

A status page that includes or integrates with these features helps you maintain customer trust.

You can focus on keeping your customers informed during outages and incidents. (Instead of worrying about the security and accessibility of your status page itself.)

Why You Should Use Instatus

Instatus offers a platform for creating and managing status pages. It’s perfect for companies looking to keep customers updated on service availability and incident management. 

Our platform stands out with features like customizable branding options, multi-language support, and integrated monitoring for various aspects. (Including API, SSL, and DNS.) Notifications are also flexible. Send alerts via email, SMS, and more channels — which is crucial for on-call teams managing incident response.

For smaller businesses, Instatus’s Free plan supports unlimited team members and subscribers. For custom branding, you need to choose The Pro plan or a higher level plan. The Pro plan currently costs $20 per month. The Business plan starts at $300 per month. 

(Contact sales for custom enterprise pricing.)

Unlike some competitors, our pricing model supports cost-effective scaling as user needs grow. Our platform is also user-friendly — so you’ll have your status pages up in a flash. ⚡

Try Instatus for Beautiful Automated Status Pages Today

Instatus sets up beautiful automated status pages in minutes. It helps businesses map their incidents, monitor downtimes, and keep customers happy by building trust. 

What’s not to love? 

Instatus is ready to jump in the fire during unplanned outages so your business gets back online faster. 

Having a status page solution is essential to improving your communication during outages and maintaining customer trust. With the right features, you can keep users informed and engaged, even during challenging times.

You’ll be able to create effective status pages in any language you need. And build them for internal use, external use, or both. 

The bottom line? Having a status page solution means your customers stay in the loop about website downtimes. Try Instatus for free now.