Website Design – Do it Yourself Or Hire an Outside Design C…
The first priority when starting an online business is to get a website. That decision is easy. To be online, you need a website. But the decisions that follow are not so simple. Should you hire a website design firm to design your web presence or should you attempt to tackle the art of website design yourself, using one of the many formats or programs available out there? Although there are no wrong or right answers there are several things to consider:
Financial-
Do-It-Yourself- requires a one time fee to buy the program or software, but most programs are relatively inexpensive in comparison to hiring a design firm. You will be able to have as large or as small a website as you wish, without any added costs. You can change or add content at a whim without being concerned of additional fees. But if you purchase the software only to procrastinate for months before finishing, the savings could be minimal.
Outsource- website design companies generally charge by the size of your web and will charge you for changes or additions each time. Pricing can vary based on the design source and there expertise in the design field. Choosing the right company can be priceless, but choosing the wrong company to work with can end your business before it begins.
Time-
Do-It-Yourself-how quickly you wish to launch your new business could play a role in your decisions. Learning new software and designing your website, to be both attractive and easily navigated will take time and effort. There is definitely a learning curve involved in this process. However the benefits of knowing the intricate details of your website can be very beneficial for years to come.
Outsource-
Your website design company will be able to start your design project almost immediately. A good company will guide you through the decisions necessary to build a good site. You will be required to take time to think about many aspects and there will be many decisions that you must make, within a given time frame, to have your website up and running quickly.
Ranking-
Do-It-Yourself-website ranking on the search engines is much more involved than just "build a good website and they will come". You will also need to learn all the key elements to getting your website ranked (known as SEO) and seen on (preferably) the first page of the search engines. Excellent keywords and meta tags are just a few requirements. There are also link strategies and a host of other techniques that must be learned to make your business competitive. Once learned, however, you will be able to "tweak" your website at a moments notice to stay on top of any changes you wish to make to your business strategies.
Outsource-
Not all website design companies offer SEO (search engine optimization). If they do, there will be extra costs involved in making your site visible in the search engines. SEO is an ever evolving skill and it is important to ensure that the company you choose knows what they're doing, or can outsource it for you. SEO is a continuous process and must be ongoing. Remember without ranking; you are just another website among millions.
Although these are but a few of the things one needs to consider, they are every bit as important as the custom "brick and mortar" decisions storefront owners need to make. These decisions will affect the success of your online business. It is important, especially at the beginning, to carefully plan and make good choices to ensure its success.