Four worries business owners have about getting a website
Taking the plunge and creating a website for your business can be a daunting process. There's so much to consider and you've probably been thinking about all of the reasons why it's going to be a stressful process. Here I hope to put your mind at ease by talking through some of the most common concerns people have about websites for their business.
Websites are expensive
It is important to think of the value that a website will bring you when you're deciding if it is actually expensive. If your new website helps you book new clients or sell more products, the first outlay involved with the website will seem very small.
There are two costs with a website, the tech costs - your website address and a place to host your website (basically where it will live online) then there's a cost for building the website. So, if you build your own website your time is the cost, or if you work with a designer their fee will be the cost. If you plan to collaborate with a designer, you can expect their fee to start at around £1000. A web designers fee will depend on their experience, what platform you are using, what is included in their service and if you need any specific functionality on your website.
As I mentioned, time away from your normal business activities are the main cost to you when doing it yourself. There are also options to purchase website templates which can help take some of the design decisions away from you and they typically start at £100.
There are costs that will apply no matter which build path you take. These are your domain (website address) which is usually around £10-20 per year, then your website hosting which will cost you between £100-£200 per year.
Websites take a long time
A website build can take a long time but equally, it can be a very quick and efficient process.
If you are working with a website designer, they will let you know upfront how long you can expect the build process to take. Based on my own experience, websites take around a month to complete but can be quicker or longer depending on the project.
The time involved for you as the client will first be the preparation of content for your website, which is the branding, images and copy for the pages on your site. Your website designer will guide you through the process of gathering this information together, but it will still take time. The good news is that it's a (mostly) one-time process and once the website is up and running you will be making small changes as your business grows, rather than starting from scratch again.
Once your copy is pulled together, the time factor will be responding to your designer with feedback. This shouldn't be such a time-hungry part of the process, but your website will benefit from you setting aside dedicated time to reviewing the work the designer has done. And again, it's just a one-time thing. Once your website is live you are free to focus on sharing it with the world!
If time is an issue for you, check out website designers who offer quick turnaround packages. Such as day or week websites. These will usually be at a premium price and for a simple landing page style website, but they will allow you to get a website up and running quickly.
RELATED POSTS
I don't need a website, social media will do
Many businesses use social media and often think that is enough, that a website is not needed. I'm fully in support of using social media, I think they are brilliant marketing tools for connecting with your audience and sharing what you're doing in your business in real-time.
But I like to think of social media as being complementary to your website, and one of the many marketing tools that ultimately leads people to your site where they will be able to make an enquiry or a purchase from you.
Your website is the core of your marketing strategy, and all roads should lead back to it, like at the centre of a mind map.
If someone comes across any of your social accounts, your website will be linked in the bio or description, if you use Pinterest, your website will be linked from the pin, if you appear in the local press, you will share your website address for people to learn more about you and so on.
Can you tell I love a website?
I won't be able to update my own website
One of my favourite topics! Business owners feeling comfortable with their own website updates. If you've never worked on a website before and are coming in completely blind then, of course, you will most likely struggle to update your own website.
There is lots of information available on YouTube and in blogs that will be able to answer pretty much any question you have about editing any type of website, but it's incredibly time-consuming to trawl through all of it to find exactly the right solution.
So, if having some control over updating your website is important to you (and I think you should definitely know how to publish a blog, update your copy and swap images) then take some time to look at which website platform is going to work best for you. I am firmly on Team Squarespace when it comes to platforms that are user-friendly but really what's important is that it works for you.
And if you are working with a designer, it's really important for you to make sure they offer some kind of training and support at handover. This can be in the form of real-time training or a video library but do ask about it when you first get in touch with your designer.
Final thoughts
I hope this has helped to answer any questions or reservations you have about the website process.
Remember to do research before DIYing or working with a web designer. Check that they are offering what your business needs, what their typical timescales and costs are and how they will support you after the build.
If you would like to work together on a website, please drop me a note through my contact form here. And if you've got other questions about websites, send me an email here.
