In part I of this blog on choosing your website designer we discussed some of the key issues to look for when looking for a WordPress website developer. In this second part we put forward some of the issues that pertain to your business and ongoing marketing efforts when it comes to selecting your WordPress website developer.
When it comes to building a website, WordPress is the most commonly used CMS (Content Management System) tool in the world. Out of the box, WordPress is a highly functional website platform with many options to build exactly what you want for your business. Many of the world’s best developers have chosen to support and develop themes and plugins for WordPress due to its popularity and the fact that the code base is open source.
Choosing WordPress as the website platform for your business is a great decision. There are many skilled developers out there. Finding great WordPress developers is a very different story. Knowing the key questions to ask when searching for a WordPress website developer will help find one that is right for your business website needs.
Key Issues to Address When Looking For A WordPress Developer:
6) Does Your Website Designer Know Which Hosting Platform is Ideal For Your Business?
Website hosting can make or break the success of your website. Choosing poorly, or simply choosing the cheapest platform can result in a slow site open to malware that can destroy any marketing efforts. Think of it like this; you can go to the dollar store to get an iPhone charging cable. Does it work the same as the one you get from Apple? Does it last as long? The same issue applies to your hosting choice. Make sure your developer knows enough about the impact of your hosting plan and what you will be doing with your website. If you are doing E-commerce, your website will naturally have more plugins and code. This requires a more robust hosting plan.
7) What are the Business Impacts With The Choices Your Developer Makes?
Cheap and easy often gets you poor results. If you are choosing a WordPress developer, it is important to interview them to get an understanding on their level of expertise and understanding of your business.
Key considerations should include: how they will build your website, how they use marketing logic throughout your site, have they considered the user experience, do they know about hosting, caching and SEO? Also, do they know anything about social media marketing, do they know what your goals are, and are you aligned to make your vision as a business owner happen?
Your website designer should be a company or person that is interested in learning about your business in order to develop a website that will make your business successful online.
8) Does Your Developer Have Any Digital Marketing Experience?
If you plan to grow your business online your website designer must know digital marketing. Your website is going to be the focal point for your business. How you message on your site, where your buttons are and how it displays on a phone screen versus a desktop screen are just some of the key decisions to make. Does your developer know about SEO (search engine optimization), how your website will convert sales or integrate with your social media platforms? How and what you are doing to market your business should factor into your decision on who you hire to build your website if you plan to be found online.
9) Will Your Website Designer Keep WordPress in its Native State So You Can Edit It?
Many of you may wonder, “Well why wouldn’t they let me edit my own website?” We ask the same thing. WordPress is an amazing tool with many built-in features to help you. We have inherited poorly built websites by poor website designers that have stripped out the components which allow you the user to edit your own site. Some developers do this so that you have to come back to them to do the updates, others do it because they don’t know WordPress. One of the greatest features of WordPress is its ease of use in the backend. Don’t let your developer remove these key features.
10) Will You Get Training On How To Use Your New WordPress Website?
As a business owner, there will always be simple things you want to change on your website. When buying a car it is assumed that you know how to put gas in the car, take it for an oil change and get it washed. The same should apply to your website. You should be taught how to do the basic edits like changing your store hours, adding new products, editing prices and changing text on a page. As a company, we have a mandate with every website we build to train our clients on how to use them. Find out from your website designer if they will train you on how to use your website.
All of these are key considerations when selecting a website designer that will impact your business in the short and long-term. Make sure you do your research and ask these key questions. We have seen many clients bring poorly designed WordPress websites to us that need a complete overhaul in order to attract new business. Ask your website designer the right questions.
Your website is the digital storefront of your business. Ensure its success by hiring a digital marketing agency or qualified person to build and maintain your WordPress website. If you have any questions regarding this blog or your website designer, please contact us using the form below, using the chat function on our website, or by calling 1-855-656-5262. Follow us on Instagram or LinkedIn. We look forward to hearing from you if you need a new website designer. We are located in Burlington, Ontario.
Open-source software (OSS) is a type of computer software in which source code is released under a license in which the copyright holder grants users the rights to use, study, change, and distribute the software to anyone and for any purpose.