If you're a new business owner, and consequently a new website owner, you're likely to be feeling a pinch in the pocket after having established the street presence of your business as well as a basic online appearance for your company, not to mention the costs involved with marketing, advertising and staffing solutions. There's no shame in admitting that it would be a great time to try to cut corners wherever possible and get back on top of your finances to avoid debt.
Although you have a website, it is basic and will require significant development in order to function adequately and provide your customers with a premium browsing experience. A quick search on the internet is likely to bring up a multitude of fast, cheap and apparently easy DIY approaches to web development that couldn’t have come at a better time for you – or could they?
The truth is, tempting as the DIY approach is, unless your day job is working as a web developer, web development is no place to cut costs by doing it yourself. If you don't have professional skills in the area, there are hundreds of things that could go wrong – at the very least you risk frustrating your customers with compromised functionality, at worst you may leave your sensitive company information open to dangerous hackers. At any rate, fixing up the mistakes you are likely to make will no doubt cost you more than employing an expert in the first instance.
Here are three more reasons why you should always consider employing an expert for web development rather than taking the do-it-yourself path:
- Functionality: The basic aim of any web development activity is to maximise the functionality of a website to ensure that it provides a smooth and efficient user experience, as well as a unique and exciting diversion in the case of applications that support quizzes, games and other interactive elements. Specialised workers in web development are focussed on these skills every day of the week and make it their business to stay up-to-date with the latest trends, techniques and troubleshooting tactics in the industry. These kinds of knowledge are essential for the professional appearance of your website and the way it functions for your customers, which is linked to their satisfaction in your services. Staying up-to-speed on all of these topics is impossible for a busy business owner and will be difficult to learn and adapt to for anyone for whom web development is not a full time occupation.
- Updates: Setting aside the points made above – and imagining that you have managed to learn and apply a range of basic web development skills all by yourself – will you also have the time and knowledge to adapt the functionality of your website on a monthly, if not weekly, basis as may be required for any business website? An expert in web development will quickly and easily update your website in order to accommodate all the recent shifts in web development trends and techniques, while, importantly, maintaining secure operating procedures. Security can be seriously compromised during web development unless appropriate protective measures are taken, and this can be a critical area where amateur developers get caught out, exposing confidential information and customer database files to cyber criminals.
- Compatibility: Another crucial reason to choose an expert in web development for the management of your website maintenance is due to the rapidly expanding range of internet viewing platforms. These days’ people are accessing websites on smart phones, lap tops, blackberries and tablet computers that all have different display properties. All applications on a website must be compatible across the full spectrum of browsers and monitors used today. Ensuring this yourself will prove pretty much impossible, whereas experts in web development have a variety of finely-tuned methods for testing the cross browser compatibility of every portion of a website.
