“Everyone has to start somewhere.” That was Loretta’s justification for engaging amateur web developer Tom to work on her company’s new WordPress based Web site.
Loretta knew Tom had never worked with WordPress before, but he promised he could do it, and considering the cost savings – especially in an economy like this – she was willing to give him a shot.
Even before launch, however, the Web site crashed, and Tom’s every attempt to fix it just made things worse. Loretta had to call in a WordPress expert (one of our fabulous team members here at SheTech and Company) to clean up the mess and having lost a month of productivity, she was back at square one.
True story.
Cheap web development can be very costly
When multiple projects compete for the same budget dollars, it can be tempting for business owners to cut corners–especially in web development where so many “inexpensive” options are available. Even companies that ought to know better may choose to overstretch in-house resources or outsource on the cheap rather than pay a premium for a specialty firm. (Loretta’s story, while unfortunate, is hardly uncommon.)
However, studies show that visitors make near instantaneous judgements about your Web site based on visual appeal alone. If your web developer lacks the expertise to know which elements add to your conversion rate, and which subtract from it, they’re rolling the dice on your revenues.
Professional web development needs to takes a big picture approach accounting for your brand message, target audience and conversion objectives. For successful Web site development you need a step-by-step plan for attracting and capturing high quality leads: a plan that includes graphic design, Web site functionality, search engine optimization, content management, and Web site analytics.
The value of an experienced web developer
Loretta learned the hard way that quality web development is a skill born of experience. Tom’s lack of proficiency led to many problems that could have been avoided simply by utilizing the tools available within WordPress itself (tools he wasn’t aware of because he’d never used the program before).
Although hiccups and setbacks are all but inevitable when developing and maintaining your Web site, an experienced team can quickly diagnose and correct such problems as they occur. And since an ineffective or inoperable Web site can’t convert visitors into customers, the return on investment you gain by using a knowledgeable web developer is far greater than any cost savings derived from choosing a lesser option.
For even better results – integrate
Of course your marketing needs go far beyond the mere functioning of your Web site; you’re juggling print media, broadcast, live events, viral marketing, email marketing, direct mail, SEO, and social media marketing as well. By engaging an integrated marketing firm like SheTech and Company you can entrust all or a portion of these diverse needs to a single team of experienced professionals. To get started today contact us!
You must be logged in to post a comment.