DIY Web Design vs. Professionals Web Designers
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by Amy Minz
Almost every business these days can benefit from a properly executed online presence, in fact, consumers expect it. For a new, small or struggling business, though, the big decision is whether to take a do-it-yourself approach, handling the planning, graphic design, coding, SEO and execution on your own, or to invest in the services of a professional website design firm.It’s more than simply a question of finances though. It’s also a question of time, your capabilities and desired outcome, and several other details. Before making a decision on which choice is best for you, be sure to analyze all of the details that should impact your choice.
Cost
At first glance, it could seem that the do-it-yourself route is free; it’s not. Even if you do understand how to design a website, you still have to actually do it, which takes time. If you choose this route, estimate how long you think it will take and compare that to the value of your time. If you know that you can earn $75/hour by focusing on your core business, and you think it will take you 40 hours to finish your own website, you will be using up $2,960 worth of your time. Something else to think about – even those of us who design websites for a living sometimes underestimate how long a specific project will take. Since you don’t design websites for a living it will probably take you longer than you first estimate.
As with anything else, you get what you pay for, so if you do hire a web design firm, you should avoid those with rock-bottom prices.
The cost of hiring a web design firm can vary widely. You may find some firms offering to design your website for a few hundred dollars, and you’ll probably come across an equal number of firms charging several thousand dollars. As with anything else, you get what you pay for, so if you do hire a web design firm, you should avoid those with rock-bottom prices. You shouldn’t take that to mean that you should necessarily look for the highest priced firms either. A truly professional and skilled firm will take the time to learn about your needs and goals before beginning any work on your website.
Capability
Is designing your own website is just as simple as picking up a copy of Photoshop and Dreamweaver, right? The short answer is no. Access to, or even mastery of these robust applications doesn’t mean that your website will work properly. There are several more details that if overlooked, can have a dramatic and negative impact on the effectiveness of your website. For example, a WYSIWYG code editor, such as Dreamweaver or Frontpage will often produce sloppy, invalid code. While this might not seem like a big problem, especially when everything looks fine in your web browser, there can be a vast quantity of issues going on {{{under the hood|behind the scenes. A poorly coded website can display incorrectly in other browsers, prevent search engines from accessing your content, or load slowly, to name just a few potential pitfalls.
One of the major benefits of hiring a web design firm is that they already understand the potential roadblocks that may come up and how to avoid them. This means that in addition to a better end-result, your website will be finished sooner. They can also advise you if an idea that you have may be ineffective, or even detrimental to your online goals.
If you don’t know what else you need, you may find that you don’t know what questions to ask or who to ask them of. It doesn’t take long to get confused, frustrated and even overwhelmed.
Support
If something stops working with a website that you’ve designed yourself, you may find yourself in a position where you have to quickly find a web design firm to fix it ASAP – which usually means rush fees! This can happen more frequently than you think; websites that worked perfectly when they were initially designed can suddenly stop working or display incorrectly when a new version of a browser comes out. If you’ve designed your own website, you don’t have anyone to call if this happens.
Your website itself is only one part of your online presence, and if you don’t know what else you need, you may find that you don’t know what questions to ask or who to ask them of. It doesn’t take long to get confused, frustrated and even overwhelmed.
Working with a web design firm, on the other hand, means that you have expert support by your side at every step of the way. They can suggest a reliable, cost-effective web host and domain registrar. They know if you need a dedicated IP or an SSL certificate. They will be able to help you set up a merchant account.
The bottom line is that there are pros and cons to each decision. You’ll need to analyze your situation, budget and schedule to determine which is the best for you.
About the Author: If you’re not achieving the results you want on the Internet, check out one of the leading web design companies, Wildfire Marketing Group! And if you want a reputable web host, check out the Hostgator reviews, at Ace Web Hosting Reviews.
Source: www.goarticles.com
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