6 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t DIY Your Website Maintenance
If you didn’t personally build your website, then trying to maintain it yourself is a big no no. Website maintenance is an important ongoing feature but trying to DIY may cause more harm than good!
Everyone likes to do a bit of DIY around the house or office but when it comes to high value assets like that of a car, you’re most likely going to have a professional undertake any maintenance or improvements.
Like any major asset in life, improvement maintenance and upkeep is a common aspect that businesses have to consider and factor into their daily operations. Things like machinery, vehicles, tools and computers need to be maintained by skilled professionals to ensure they continue operating at peak performance and deliver at a standard that business owners can rely on.
So why should a website be any different?
A common occurrence in the web industry is the amount of website owners who neglect or opt to maintain and optimize their website asset themselves. This seems a little bizarre for something that may well have costed in the realm of $10,000 that is also the digital face of the business where thousands of potential customers visit each and every day.
An analogy that we like to use at Strong Digital to prove the importance of website maintenance is that of two brick and mortar technology stores that sit side by side on a busy street. Let’s call them Store Strong and Store Weak.
Store Strong features cutting edge computer equipment to facilitate both commercial and personal use customers. They have the most up to date sales software and best trained customer service representatives. Their store is also aesthetically pleasing with professional fit outs and excellent branding that resonates with customers. The owner is constantly ensuring their store looks professional, remains competitive and is customer focused who isn’t afraid to seek outside help to constantly improve their offering.
Store Weak also features cutting edge computer equipment to facilitate both commercial and personal use customers. They have an outdated sales software and poorly trained customer service representatives. Their store is aesthetically daggy with an ageing fit out and branding that confuses customers. The owner is neglectful of their store, is more concerned about cutting costs and customer satisfaction isn’t a priority who won’t seek outside help to improve their offerings as it’s too costly.
Based on this analogy, which store do you think will be around in the next 6 months with one less competitor and being even more profitable? You guessed, Store Strong!
Much like the approach Store Strong takes towards its business operations, websites too should be viewed in the same light. An online asset needs upkeep and maintenance in order to function at a high level and remain competitive and profitable. This is why we have put together 6 reasons why you shouldn’t DIY your website maintenance.
- What’s Basic for A Web Developer Might Be Complicated For You
Much like our Store Strong example, ensuring that your website is constantly maintained guarantees that your website is operating at its highest possible standard and providing an excellent service offering to your clientele. As a web developer was responsible for creating your website, they are also highly skilled in maintaining the website to ensure continued functionality. Don’t wait for something to break or attempt to DIY a problem yourself, as this could create a business halting issue. With constant site maintenance, developers can predict where future issues may arise and nip them in the bud before they rear their ugly head!
2. Do You Know What You Need To Do To Improve Your Website?
Often web development agencies offer a ‘maintenance only’ service. This of course is an important part of a websites lifecycle but improving a website should also be a part of the package. Like Store Strong, improving your website so that it looks aesthetically fresh, competitive and engaging with customers is the ultimate goal and sure to drive increased traffic. Do you know how to improve your website? By not improving your online presence, one risks falling behind in the marketplace which may result in poorer traffic and sales. A web developer can identify areas to improve that may result in preventing future issues whilst also enhancing the user experience of a website.
3. Don’t Compromise Your Security
Malicious attempts to access the data of a website and that of customer data is a common occurrence that websites face on a daily basis. Your website security should be of paramount importance because if infiltrated, can mean hours, days or even weeks of trying to get it back online which means a loss in revenue and more importantly, a loss in trust from your customers. Are you familiar with identifying and preventing malicious attempts to your website? Web developers are highly skilled in implementing complex safety protocols as well as updating and seeking out any vulnerabilities on a website’s backend to prevent outside intrusions. When it comes to website security – prevention is key, professional agencies keep on top of website security trends and alerts to prevent future issues.
4. Where’s the Update Button?!
Are you familiar with backend updates and plugins? Depending on the complexity and structure of your website, constant updates may be required to guarantee the capability of your website. The majority of these updates relate to the functioning quality of the site as well as added security from potential infiltrators. For websites running on a platform like WordPress, plugins are a common feature which also require updating or removal if they have expired or no longer operate at a desirable level. Occasionally, bugs or issues may arise during an update which an experienced web developer can address promptly and effectively.
5. DIY Could Create Skyrocketing Costs Leaving Your Business Vulnerable
As highlighted before, keeping on top of website maintenance helps to not only prevent any issues from occurring but constant improvements effectively help to increase its performance. In many scenarios, those who decide to DIY their website maintenance often compound the problem even further meaning more time and money spent on fixing newly created problems. Also, if problems are left to fester and a site becomes compromised from a security perspective, a business owner could be facing thousands in direct costs to fix and secure the website plus the added indirect costs of having a website offline.
6. What If Something Goes Wrong?
Imagine you are doing a DIY fix on your website, then something goes wrong and your website crashes and with it so do your inbound leads – what do you do? You’d have to scramble to find someone who is able to fix it for you urgently. That’s going to be very difficult, it may be days before someone can even look at it, which is why we cannot stress enough the importance of hiring a professional team to manage your website maintenance, upkeep and ongoing improvements. Your website is directly tied to the success of your business, which is why we highly recommend that you avoid DIY website maintenance and instead entrust your website to a professional.
Website maintenance shouldn’t be ignored or avoided. Websites are complex, highly technical digital assets that are the primary source of revenue for a great majority of businesses. Failure to service, improve and protect your online presence could result in costly consequences and let’s face it, no one wants to end up like Store Weak.
So if you’re ready to create long-term value for your business, give us a call and see what we can do for you!