So last week we talked about designing. This week, we’re talking about building it yourself or paying to have it built. So I suppose we should set a few parameters around that so that everyone knows who we’re talking about. So build yourself is basically using one of the site builder services that allow you to drag and drop and build your own content.
Or you could use a company like ours, who could be implementing a WordPress template for you or creating a completely custom build. So there are distinctly different levels and it’s important you are clear about what you want the website to achieve and write a “must-have” list.
If your “must-have” list starts to have some more complicated components, then it starts to become more realistic to consider paying someone to build it for you. Time is also a factor when considering building a website yourself – do you have the time to do it, and is it a false economy (ie. how much of that time should you be spending doing other things).
Many business owners are rightly ambitious about what they’re trying to achieve with their website. However, because they don’t build websites all the time, they perhaps don’t consider factors such as user experience and making the journey through the site is simple and well structured for visitors.
So our first and absolute top tip (if you’re going to build it yourself) is keep it simple. Listen to the previous podcasts, work out exactly what you want it’s core objective to be, and then design it on paper.
You also need to consider the updating of the core systems and plugins once you’ve built it. These software updates fix issues, prevent security vulnerabilities and bugs. Just like the software updates that we regularly do on our phones for example.
And then there’s content – you need to keep it up to date, refresh your text and images, make sure all of your links are working properly. Blogs are great – great for content for social media, but you need to be committed to creating content for it. An empty or outdated blog can work against your site in the same way that a great blog can be an asset. If you’ve got a News section, keep it new.
If you decide to use a company to develop your site for you, make sure you give them a clear brief and agree what is in and out of scope. Discuss domain names, hosting and updating with them, and once your requirements are clear, you are much more likely to get an accurate price and a website that does what you expect it to do. Some companies will offer installments for your build package and monthly payments for your maintenance and updating. It’s worth asking the question.
Join us for our next 30 second read where we talk about Internet Marketing. Or listen to the full episode on our Podcast.
