So you have a great new business idea but no online presence, or perhaps you already have a website but it’s looking old and outdated and you need a new one. What should you know or be thinking about before getting a new website built?
Well JPS Media are here to help you, whether you choose to use us as your website provider or not. We still think that knowledge is power and so you should have a reasonable understanding of what to expect. So let’s jump straight in shall we?
Today anyone can build their own website using a self builder platform such as wix, or goDaddy. There are many more but you’re not here to read lists! So what’s the difference? Well these are great if you just want a very low budget cheap solution. However these do add in extra code and areas to make it easier for you to edit that will certainly hinder your websites load time and crawl rate by search engines. I’m not going to be one of those saying these are terrible solutions, as they do work for some small business’s to get them going. However most people will eventually out grow these style websites and require something a little more bespoke and something that ranks better.
So what are the alternatives I hear you cry? Well, the next option is to try do it properly. Using a platform like WordPress would allow you to DIY a lot of the work with little coding knowledge, however again these can again be a little clunky and slow if not setup correctly. But if done right they can be ideal we have setup a lot of small businesses with similar WordPress websites. So the client can manage their own content and it saves the costs of having a web team run everything for you.
The next option is the area where we specialise our skills. Your sole business income relies on web traffic and making sales online. In which case we would asses each company requirement to determine what the best solution would be for you.
If you are selling items a e-commerce solution is likely the answer this gives a shopping cart and checkout style approach that most users have become accustomed too when purchasing online. It also provides secure checkout with a payment gateway chosen by yourself.
We also cover much more bespoke solutions for example, home letting and estate agents may require integration with third party providers to get their properties on rightmove or hotel and property investors want to get their bookings from Air BnB or Booking.com for example. We can cater to any api setup that you may require. Don’t worry if your not sure on this aspect we can help you though it, as we have done this many times over! For many many different industries.
So once you know what sort of website you require your next step is to consider budget. Now not many people like to disclose this or even think about it. However, it’s a great way to communicate your limits to your web company. For example once we know what your budget is we will strictly adere to it and find avenues to accommodate all your requirements with more cost effective solutions if it suits. But always remember to be realistic, if you want a professional bees knees website, but only have a banana and a 5pence piece from the back of your sofa, it maybe wise to save up a little.
Remember the majority of websites, certainly any websites provided by JPS Media can be extended upon. We build all our sites to last and this allows the site to grow as your business grows. This allows you to start of small and push more into your website and online marketing as your income increases and so as does your budget.
Lastly, this stings a lot of people. Always check to see who owns the end product. Our clients own 100% of what we provide meaning you can come back to us but you you don’t have to. Many web companies will charge you to build the website and then charge you to rent a licence to use it and if you decide to go elsewhere the you have to start from scratch. We don’t think this is a fair way to do business, so always check this.
So hopefully you are now empowered enough to know what you need and go out and start getting website design quotes. Contact JPS Media today for a free quote without obligation.
Ahaa, its good information, I have been concerning using wix website builder, I have read all about that, so now I am also looking at other website options. The question must be which will be best for me.