It’s often said, and rightly so, that website designing is a lot of fun. It’s creative work that helps the web designer express him/her self in ways that few other professions can. However, designing and managing a website isn’t easy for no IT people. When your business depends on your web presence to survive and thrive, you don’t want to rely on fly-by-night web designer. And you certainly shouldn’t consider “Do It Yourself” as an option. A full-featured website design and management company is what you need. Read on to find out why.
There’s a lot at stake
In today’s highly-connected business world, entrepreneurs and business owners have a lot on their plates. From arranging financing, to selling and marketing your business, dealing with new and existing customers – it all rests on your shoulders. Do you really need to add website design to that list? Probably not…and here’s why:
• Some jobs are best left to specialists. Just like you wouldn’t want to design and build your own office building (unless you’re a certified and licensed architect), you shouldn’t think about DIY website development and design
• Even with so-called DIY tools, there’s a lot involved in keeping up a professionally designed website. From Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) to site speed optimisation, and from load times to highly responsive sites, a good web designer needs to understand it all. Do you have the skills needed – or the time?
• Should your website go down, are you technically equipped to get it back up again – QUICKLY? Remember, customers, business partners and prospective clients all depend on finding and connecting with you via your website. Unless web designing is your core skill, you’ll hardly have time to run your business AND troubleshoot a broken website.
When it comes to professionally maintaining your online presence, DIY or lone-wolf operators isn’t an option. There’s a lot at stake for businesses that rely heavily on their websites. And unless you are also a hands-on website designer yourself (in addition to a HR Manager, Accountant, Marketing Manager…and more!), you should look for alternate options.
So, what’s the answer? Full-featured Website Management
As an “active” business manager, you should expect to play a leading role in how your web design evolves, and all of the features and functionality it offers. However, when it comes to the actual designing, development and management of the site, you should consider working with a full-featured website designing agency. Here’s why:
• Its not just about the time involved – it’s also about the diverse skill sets that full- featured website management teams bring with them. From graphics designers to coders, and from website architects to web-traffic analysts – you get the benefits of an entire company, not just a single individual!
• Good website design isn’t a “build it once and forget it” proposition. You need to continually update your site. And that’s what full-featured web service providers offer
• And what about upgrading the site every time technology changes? From Operating System (OS) upgrades, to enhancements to Web browsers – they all impact your website. A full-featured web site design and management team will take care of it all!
• Your business will grow, and so will your web presence. When you expand and need to migrate to newer/better platforms, a full-featured website management company will do it all for you
• Embracing the latest trends and developments in web design and hosting is a key requirement for keeping your competitors at bay. Professional companies will quickly evaluate latest trends to see if they are worth embracing, and then offer those to clients. You don't need to spend time evaluating all the web technology developments that happen
• A full-featured web design agency has multiple servers to ensure your web site is always available – your “up time” is close to 100%! If one server fails, another will take over. If you were to DIY, you’d probably have to spend a fortune on infrastructure such as that!
• And of course, you need to stay connected always. But what if your email isn’t working – does your lone-wolf contractor also have Email Administrator skills? Likely not! The full-service company will deal with such issues seamlessly, so you’ll likely never even know that there is an issue at all!
As a business owner, one of the biggest concerns you have is about cost: How much will it cost to work with a full service web designing agency? Well, you’ll be surprised at the answer!
Usually, working with a full-featured website management company is more cost-effective than hiring a team of Web design specialists, Developers, Server management specialists, Architects, Database Administrators etc. The fee is transparent, and often scalable based on what your needs are.
Unlike a regular salary you pay to your IT department - which is usually fixed, no matter how many servers you own, or how many web pages your site has - a full-featured web design agency will often charge based on the services you use and need. When you do the maths, you’ll find using a full-service web design and management service is a more cost effective alternate and better for your business.
If you have any questions regarding your website and site management give us a call on 01-6216866 or email info@myit.ie .
