Should I hire a professional website designer vs DIY-ing it?
Having a website is absolutely necessary if you’re taking your business seriously.
You are immediately seen as more legit (and have proven through this commitment that your project isn’t just a weekend hobby or side-hustle).
Your social media might be great at breaking down a barrier that helps your customers see you’re relatable and approachable, but your website is the tool that will get your sales, enquiries and essentially keep your business afloat.
So whether you’re in the early days or need a refresh of an old site, do you hire a professional to make your website vs do you DIY-ing it?
Other than the obvious time vs funds play-off, there are many other considerations, such as your website goals and your own skill set, that will determine which is the best choice. It’s not a decision to take lightly, so here are the most prevalent pros and cons to get you thinking.
Pros for a designer:
The time commitment.
Think of the number of hours it would take you to design and build your own website.
How many of those hours could you be doing the thing you do best, instead, earning your hourly rate? Hiring a website designer to take the task off your hands will give you more time to focus on the rest of your business.
Making the decision between a professional website and a DIY website can be a play-off between the price of a brand spanking new site vs the number of hours work you’d be missing out on if you did it yourself.
Limited brain space?
Don’t have to fill your head with new skills and then still feel the final outcome is not up to scratch. The last thing you want to do is create a website and not really feel like it’s ‘you’.
Website structure.
A designer has the end product in mind and will usually guide you through the content that will be effective on your website. Without a designer, you may be left to your own devices to research and piece together what content you need on your site.
Got a launch deadline?
If you have a desired launch date or deadline in mind, a designer might be a good option: this is their full-time job: putting together a cohesive design is going to take them a fraction of the time it will take you to do the same work.
So you are more likely to meet that date (as long as the designer has the availability in their calendar) and you can avoid those panicked last days of not being able to DIY-it in time to a satisfactory quality.
More effective copy.
If your designer has experience in copywriting, having some guidance when it comes to writing content to authentically and accurately represent your business can be invaluable.
The visuals of a website make the first impression, but it’s the copy and content and story and messaging that is going to make a lasting impact on a potential customer.
Optimising your copy to speak to the needs and desires of your target market can be the difference between someone swiftly exiting your website and a sale.
Pros for DESIGNING it yourself:
Limited funds.
It’s going to save you a chunk of money. In the early days of running your own business you might not/probably won’t yet have a marketing budget. Or if you have a limited amount set aside for any operating expenses, investing in staff training or buying stock might be more of a priority.
GETTING YOUR MESSAGING RIGHT.
No one knows your business better than you do, so if you’re in control you can be certain that when it comes to getting across your personality and experience you’re the best person for the job.
It’ll save you having to worry about communicating every little nuance of your business, experience and story to someone new.
Picking A platform.
Making your own website is easier now than ever, with so many fantastic website building platforms out there, with tons of support and tech tutorials.
The hardest thing then is deciding which platform to use.
Things to consider when playing these different platforms off against each other are:
The features you want on your website
Whether you’re product or service baseD
The fee or subscription to keep your website live
The level of support you get
And the builder itself, how you construct pages and upload content (as some are drag-and-drop style, where as some are a bit more technical).
I use Squarespace for my own site (and my clients’) because it’s a happy medium between a site that is DIY-able but has great support should you get to a sticking point.
The templates are professional (even though I don’t use them myself), their e-commerce section is easy to navigate and the customer support is fab.
They are always launching new products and features so you don’t need to use a platform where multiple plug-ins make your website susceptible to viruses.
Skills for the long-term.
Along with building your own website comes a lot of learning about marketing, addressing your target market, optimisation for sales, messaging and design.
By practicing these skills in building your website, it can help you have a better understanding of how to market your business or brand.
A better grasp of your product/service, relative to your audience and competitors, will ensure you now have a different perspective of the landscape of your industry that will only enhance any future marketing materials you create to help you stand out.
Building your own website might be a large goal to forgo, but the skills will stay with you for years to come.
Too many cooks.
The more specific your designer-needs are (looking for someone who understands your industry, can help with your copy, maybe you need someone who can also take care of your visual branding or professional photography as well) the harder it is to find one.
This might mean needing to hire multiple professionals, which can get costly quickly, and runs the risk of having elements on your site (from different people) that aren’t cohesive.
STAYING up-to-date.
When it comes to growing your business, things shift and change. The focus of our services changes or our products improve.
So alongside that, changes will be made to your website.
By DIY-ing your website, you are in the best position to keep things refreshed and up to date, without needing to pay someone else to implement the changes or wait until your designer has space for you in their bookings calendar.
Whatever you decide, take some time to list out the things that are most important to you. Think about what your end goal is for having a website and whether one designer can achieve that, or whether a collaborative effort is the best route forward.
At the end of the day, your website needs to feel authentic to you, your business, your mission/ethos and also resonate with your target market. So it’s not a decision you should take lightly.
But it IS an exciting and empowering step towards boosting your brand’s integrity and seeing more consistent conversions.
