Why should you hire a web designer? Well, I’ve just read an article online from someone explaining the exact opposite of what this post is about. His article, “Why you should NOT hire a website designer 2020″ left me baffled. And here’s why!
In his article, he tells the story of how someone (which turns out to be him) in 2010 invested thousands of dollars in getting a website designer to design his website. The website was to sell a product, but he didn’t manage to get any sales from it. From this, he concluded that small businesses shouldn’t employ the services of a web designer.
Instead, he goes on to say that when you first launch your business, you should only use online website builders such as Wix, Squarespace or Weebly to design your website. He advocates the use one of their premade templates, drop in some photos, add some text and publish.
So why is not hiring a web designer for a new business a bad idea?
Well, whilst these online website builders do have their place, primarily for non-business websites, they are no substitute for the skill, insight and one-on-one contact that you get with a web designer. Moreover, whilst these website builders are very much drag and drop, they can quickly spiral out of control. Drop-in a piece of text in the wrong place and suddenly, your website is all over the place. And yes, they do offer support, but not to the level you get with a web designer.
Perhaps one of the most important trade-offs’ you get when using these online builders is the scenario where you just don’t feel confident in editing and updating your website. And that’s not something to feel ashamed of, or like you’re in some way failing to maintain your website. Not everyone is technically minded – I for one appreciate that. Wix, Squarespace, Weebly or any other form of online website builder company won’t make changes to your website for you. So, it’s down to you to maintain your website.
Web designers offer you and your business support when it comes to your website.
Any web designer worth his or her salt will offer ongoing support with your website, either as part of a monthly cost or as part of the whole package. I do this for every client. I even go one step further and offer free support for the first six months that the website is live. And even after that time, if the change is quick, I tend to do that for free. It allows me and my clients to have that kind of business relationship where they know they can trust my opinion, my service and that I have their back when it comes to one of their most important business assets. That’s not something you’ll get with these other companies.
So why hire a web designer?
So, the title of this article is “Why you SHOULD hire a website designer“, not just in 2020, but beyond. Hopefully, you will see why I think that in today’s tech-driven world, where having an online presence is key, you do still need a real person at the end of the phone or email who understands your website. Someone who can talk things through with you – both during the initial design phase and when the design is complete. Someone who understands websites. That’s where us web designers come in. We don’t sit in a booth in a support centre, answering help tickets with pre-written replies, and more importantly, we care about you, your business and your website.
